After 16 years, Kyle Markland suddenly resigned as president/CEO from the $1.6 billion Affinity Plus Federal Credit Union on Aug. 28. Markland took the helm of the St. Paul, Minn.-based credit union in December 1997.

David Larson was named by the board as interim president and CEO, according to a statement from Affinity Plus. Larson has been with the credit union since 2002, last serving in the position of senior vice president.

A new empty nester, Markland made the decision to resign from Affinity Plus to “take a step back and see what he wants to do now,” Larson told Credit Union Times Aug. 29.

Larson said Markland sent a letter to credit union employees explaining the departure.

“He talked about why and what he plans to do in the future,” Larson said. “His son Andrew just went off to college. Both of his kids are now in college. For the first time, Kyle and his wife will be empty nesters. He said he wanted to take some time, step back and take a sabbatical.”

Larson said Markland's letter to employees, which was sent within a letter from Affinity Plus's Board Chairperson Connie Roehrich, was only meant for the credit union's employees and would not be released.

Attempts to reach Markland were unsuccessful.

Larson said he was caught off guard when he heard the news. But despite the unexpected nature of his new role, he said he is ready to take on the interim position.

“I've been a senior vice president since 2007 and I've had a lot of exposure within our organization,” Larson said. “There's a great rapport with the leadership team.”

Larson said Affinity Plus will conduct a national search as well as look internally within the credit union's ranks. The board is hoping to have the search completed by the end of the year or early next year, he added.

This is the second recent senior management resignation from Affinity Plus. Liz Hayes, chief administrative officer, gave her notice on July 17 and resigned at the end of July after 15 years at the credit union. She told a local publication that she wanted to focus on her master's thesis and spend time with her daughter, who was planning to attend college overseas this year.

Larson said the resignations of Hayes and Markland were not related.

Affinity Plus' financials reveal a significant decrease in profitability over the past year. As of June 30, the credit union reported a 0.57% return on assets, according to its financial performance reports posted on the NCUA website. Comparatively, in June 2012, ROA was 1.45%. The loss of income was driven by decreases in loan yield, investment yield and fee income.

During the past year, provisions for loan and lease losses increased, but delinquencies and charge offs have decreased. Affinity Plus reported a nearly 97% loan-to-share ratio as of June 30 and 7.93% net worth.

Instant Insights /

Markland's Exit Puzzles Affinity Plus Interim

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