CEO of Cobalt Credit Union set to call it a career

Gail DeBoer, president and CEO of Cobalt Credit Union in Papillion, Neb., has announced plans to retire at the beginning of 2021, more than 30 years after first joining the staff there.

DeBoer started at Cobalt — then known as SAC Federal Credit Union — in 1988 and held several positions over the next 19 years before being appointed president and CEO in 2007. Under her leadership, the credit union’s assets grew from $312 million to over $1 billion, and today Cobalt serves more than 110,000 members across 14 counties in Iowa and Nebraska.

A press release credited DeBoer with successfully leading Cobalt’s 2016 rebranding effort and repositioning it in the marketplace, along with helping expand its branch footprint into grocery store and retail locations. Cobalt currently has 24 branches with another two in development.

“The most rewarding part of my job has been seeing our employees grow, develop and do great things in the communities we serve," DeBoer said in the release.

Alan Stoltenberg, Cobalt’s chief lending officer, has been selected as DeBoer’s successor, and will serve as EVP until her retirement.

Cobalt posted first-half earnings of about $982,000, compared with nearly $4 million for the first six months of 2019, driven partly by a decline in noninterest income nad increased allowance for credit losses.