Capital Brief: Veteran Banking Lobbyist Decides to Retire

Longtime bank lobbyist Marty Farmer is calling it quits.

Mr. Farmer on Friday informed Kenneth A. Guenther, executive vice president of the Independent Bankers Association of America, of his plan to retire Dec. 31.

In an interview Monday, Mr. Farmer, 57, said he was tired of the grueling hours required of lobbyists, adding that he was not leaving because of disputes with the IBAA.

"I'm sure on the face of it people will read a lot of it into it," Mr. Farmer said. "But it is nothing more than it is. When the Congress was over, I was very tired of it and didn't want to go through it all again."

Mr. Guenther released a statement praising Mr. Farmer's work this year on financial reform legislation. "When a banking lobbyist hall of fame is established, Marty Farmer will be inducted as a charter member," he said.

Mr. Farmer joined the IBAA in March after 11 years of lobbying for Barnett Banks Inc. He was forced to leave the Jacksonville, Fla., banking company after it was acquired by NationsBank Corp., which differed from Barnett's position on financial reform. Before 1986 he was a senior attorney and director of government relations for First Chicago Corp.

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