A Hawaii banker who founded what is now the state's third-largest bank is stepping down after more than a generation at the helm.
James M. Morita, the 83-year-old chairman and chief executive officer of CB Bancshares, Honolulu, has announced plans to retire from his posts within a few months.
No successor was designated, and Mr. Morita indicated in a press release that he would urge the board to form a search committee. He will formally step down once a successor has been selected, but no later than the company's annual meeting, tentatively planned for spring.
"We are disappointed that Mr. Morita, a co-founder of the bank, will be stepping down from his executive responsibilities," Robert R. Taira, CB vice chairman, said in a press release. "But we are pleased that he will continue to be available as a director and a consultant to provide his counsel and judgment to the bank."
Mr. Morita did not return phone calls.
Though he is well past typical retirement age for most bankers, the announcement caught many in the islands' small banking community off guard.
"This was a complete surprise," said Terrill S.W. Chock, executive vice president of Bank of Honolulu, the island's smallest, at $100 million of assets. Despite Mr. Morita's age, other bankers "never gave it a second thought because he was always there."
The retirement is not expected to affect the direction of $1.4 billion- asset CB.
Mr. Morita, who had been a public prosecutor and a Honolulu city and county, was a lead organizer of City Bank in 1958. He has been chairman of the bank since 1961 and chief executive since 1973, and chairman and CEO of the holding company since 1980.
He also guided the company's 1994 acquisition of International Savings and Loan, which is to be merged with City Bank by mid-1997.
"He has been an influence in the banking industry in Hawaii for the past 40 years," said Raymond Muraoka, executive vice president of the Hawaii Bankers Association. "He is a very important figure" at CB Bancshares.
The company was under fire last year from New York-based M.A. Schapiro & Co., which led a dissatisfied investor group. The group complained of nepotism, self-dealing, high salaries and other expenses, and weak earnings. Schapiro failed, however, to unseat two CB directors.
