John Zmolek will retire as CEO of Verity Credit Union in Seattle this spring, Verity said Monday.
Zmolek will step down following the credit union's annual meeting on April 14. Verity has not announced a successor.
Zmolek spent 31 years at the $690 million-asset Verity, first as a board member and then holding several different executive roles before being named CEO in 2014.
In 2019, Verity and 27 other members of the Global Alliance for Banking on Values pledged to track and monitor the carbon impact of their loans and investments by 2022 with the goal of aligning the carbon footprint of their portfolio with Paris Agreement goals to keep global temperature increases under control.
“John led Verity with heart and vision,” Zach Gose, Verity's board chairman, said in a press release. “His focus on social and environmental impacts inspired Verity to help communities dream boldly.”
In the seven years before Zmolek became CEO, Verity added just 458 new members. In the seven years since he took the reins, membership has risen by 9,461, according to the credit union.
“I’ve always felt that membership growth was the most important indicator of whether we are living our mission. It demonstrates how we are enhancing lives by building trusted relationships with members and the community," Zmolek said.
Verity earned roughly $73,000 in the first three quarters of 2020, down 95% compared with $1.5 million in the first nine months of 2019, according to National Credit Union Administration call report data. The drop was driven in part by a 55% increase in allowance for loan losses, along with small reductions in lending and noninterest income.
