Union is headquartered in the James Center at 1051 E. Cary St.
As it prepares to close on a major acquisition, a local bank has poached a big name from a big competitor to run its day-to-day.
Union Bank announced Monday that John Stallings Jr., who until last week was the Richmond-based statewide head of SunTrust, will join the bank later this month as president.
Union CEO John Asbury, who took the helm earlier this year and holds the titles of president and CEO, said the bank’s continued growth led to the hire.
“I have now been here long enough to have a clear view of the overall objectives and strategy,” Asbury said. “It seemed clear it was the appropriate time to separate my duties.”
Stalling’s last day at SunTrust was Aug. 30. He’ll take his post at Union on Sept. 29 and will oversee operations of the bank’s various lines of business.
John Stallings
The addition will free up Asbury to focus on big-picture details, particularly as Union will cross the $10 billion asset threshold at yearend when it completes its acquisition of Richmond-based Xenith Bank. The $700 million deal will make Union a $12 billion regional powerhouse.
“I’ll now be in a position to better focus my time on more strategic issues,” Asbury said, which includes corporate development, M&A and investor relations.
“This is an acceleration strategy. We are doing this by design to accelerate the development of Union Bank … to consolidate the opportunities before us.”
Asbury said he approached Stallings about the job at the urging of former Union CEO Billy Beale and Xenith CEO Gaylon Layfield.
“This has always been part of the plan,” Asbury said. “The question was, when was the right time and, more importantly, who was the right candidate?”
Stallings, 50, said he was drawn to the job because it lets him get his hands on all of Union’s business segments, including consumer and commercial banking, wealth management and other areas. That’s a departure from his role at SunTrust, where he primarily focused on commercial banking.
“I spent 27 years at SunTrust (and its predecessors),” Stallings said. “The bank president role provides an opportunity to lead all four client-facing business.”
Stallings will be the first standalone president at Union since John Neal retired in 2015.
Stalling’s compensation package at Union will include an initial annual base salary of $400,000, a $200,000 signing bonus after 30 days and stock awards with a market value of $430,000, according to SEC filings.
Stallings was born in North Carolina, raised in Northern Virginia and Connecticut and moved to Richmond for SunTrust seven years ago.
He has a master’s degree from Washington University in St. Louis and a bachelor’s from Vanderbilt University.
Stallings does have some loose ties to Union’s past. He worked for National Commerce Financial, a SunTrust predecessor that was considered a pioneer of in-store banking. That company was behind the creation of the former First Market Bank, which operated in local Ukrop’s grocery stores before being acquired by Union.
Union is headquartered in the James Center at 1051 E. Cary St.
As it prepares to close on a major acquisition, a local bank has poached a big name from a big competitor to run its day-to-day.
Union Bank announced Monday that John Stallings Jr., who until last week was the Richmond-based statewide head of SunTrust, will join the bank later this month as president.
Union CEO John Asbury, who took the helm earlier this year and holds the titles of president and CEO, said the bank’s continued growth led to the hire.
“I have now been here long enough to have a clear view of the overall objectives and strategy,” Asbury said. “It seemed clear it was the appropriate time to separate my duties.”
Stalling’s last day at SunTrust was Aug. 30. He’ll take his post at Union on Sept. 29 and will oversee operations of the bank’s various lines of business.
John Stallings
The addition will free up Asbury to focus on big-picture details, particularly as Union will cross the $10 billion asset threshold at yearend when it completes its acquisition of Richmond-based Xenith Bank. The $700 million deal will make Union a $12 billion regional powerhouse.
“I’ll now be in a position to better focus my time on more strategic issues,” Asbury said, which includes corporate development, M&A and investor relations.
“This is an acceleration strategy. We are doing this by design to accelerate the development of Union Bank … to consolidate the opportunities before us.”
Asbury said he approached Stallings about the job at the urging of former Union CEO Billy Beale and Xenith CEO Gaylon Layfield.
“This has always been part of the plan,” Asbury said. “The question was, when was the right time and, more importantly, who was the right candidate?”
Stallings, 50, said he was drawn to the job because it lets him get his hands on all of Union’s business segments, including consumer and commercial banking, wealth management and other areas. That’s a departure from his role at SunTrust, where he primarily focused on commercial banking.
“I spent 27 years at SunTrust (and its predecessors),” Stallings said. “The bank president role provides an opportunity to lead all four client-facing business.”
Stallings will be the first standalone president at Union since John Neal retired in 2015.
Stalling’s compensation package at Union will include an initial annual base salary of $400,000, a $200,000 signing bonus after 30 days and stock awards with a market value of $430,000, according to SEC filings.
Stallings was born in North Carolina, raised in Northern Virginia and Connecticut and moved to Richmond for SunTrust seven years ago.
He has a master’s degree from Washington University in St. Louis and a bachelor’s from Vanderbilt University.
Stallings does have some loose ties to Union’s past. He worked for National Commerce Financial, a SunTrust predecessor that was considered a pioneer of in-store banking. That company was behind the creation of the former First Market Bank, which operated in local Ukrop’s grocery stores before being acquired by Union.