William B. Naryka of Banc One Mortgage is the latest high-level executive to switch to Fleet Mortgage Group.
Mr. Naryka has been with Banc One Corp. for five and a half years, including three as chief financial officer of the mortgage unit. He is to join Fleet on Dec. 1.
Fleet Mortgage has been on a hiring spree in recent months, signing an executive vice president for loan production in September and another production executive and a head of servicing in October.
Last week Fleet Mortgage hired A. William Schenck 3d, formerly a vice chairman at Great Western Financial Corp., as chairman and chief executive officer.
Fleet is "building a powerful management team. This is another step in solidifying it with top flight talent," said Albert V. Will, managing director of Neologics, a mortgage software company. Mr. Will had worked with Mr. Naryka at Banc One Mortgage.
Michael J. Torke, president of Fleet Mortgage Group, Columbia, S.C., said Mr. Naryka's experience in other financial services businesses was one of the major reasons Fleet hired him.
Before joining Banc One Mortgage, Mr. Naryka had been chief financial officer of Banc One Corp.'s investor services and diversified services units. In those roles he had financial oversight of Banc One's brokerage, insurance, and mutual fund groups.
Mr. Torke said one of Mr. Naryka's first objectives will be to help set up a captive mortgage reinsurance subsidiary, a unit that melds insurance and mortgage operations.
Reinsurance subsidiaries allow banks to share profits in the lucrative mortgage insurance business. A reinsurance subsidiary would assume some of the risk on loans the bank originates, but would also receive a portion of the mortgage insurance premiums.
Banc One Corp. is one of four banks that have received approval from the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency to set up a reinsurance subsidiary. Banc One's reinsurance plans have been criticized by some mortgage insurers, because Banc One is proposing to assume more risk than the other banks.
Neither Mr. Torke or Mr. Naryka would discuss how Fleet would set up its subsidiary. Mr. Torke noted that Fleet had not filed for approval from the Comptroller's Office.
Mr. Naryka will also work with members of Fleet Financial Group's treasury department to hedge the mortgage unit's $122 billion servicing portfolio.
But he said he realizes boosting profitability will be the most important challenge for him and Fleet's other recent hires.
"One of the tasks of this new management team will be to develop a strategic plan to meet the expectations of Fleet and the shareholders," he said.
Mr. Naryka will be the third major executive to leave Banc One Mortgage this year. Mr. Will, who had been chief operating officer, left in August to join Neologics. And Joseph T. McCartin, who was chief information officer, left several months ago to join GE Capital Mortgage Services.
