Bank of North Dakota president to retire July 2

Todd Steinwand, president of the Bank of North Dakota, speaks during a meeting of the Industrial Commission on June 26, 2024. (Michael Achterling/North Dakota Monitor)

The president of the Bank of North Dakota will retire effective July 2.

In a letter to the North Dakota Industrial Commission, Todd Steinwand, president and CEO of the state-owned bank, thanked commissioners for their support during his three years in the leadership role.

“Serving as president of the Bank of North Dakota has been the highlight of my 42-year banking career,” Steinwand said in his resignation letter.

North Dakota Industrial Commission members, who voted Wednesday to accept his resignation, praised Steinwand for his service.

“We know this has been thoughtfully planned and a long time coming and we appreciate you sticking around maybe a little longer than you wanted to to help us get to this point,” said Gov. Doug Burgum, chair of the Industrial Commission.

Steinwand was named president in 2021 after the retirement of former bank president Eric Hardmeyer. He had worked for the bank since 2015, when he was named senior vice president and chief business development officer.

Steinwand told commissioners last October he intended to retire in the second quarter of 2024 so they could begin a search for his replacement.

Rob Pfennig, chief financial officer for the Bank of North Dakota, was appointed to serve as  interim bank president until a permanent replacement is found. Pfennig said he does not plan to apply for the permanent position.

“This is an important step while we continue the search because we have to have someone that has the signing authority as the bank president,” Burgum said. He added it was important to name an interim replacement who doesn’t want the permanent role so their focus can be on running the bank.

Other Industrial Commission members are Attorney General Drew Wrigley and Agriculture Commissioner Doug Goehring. The Bank of North Dakota, founded in 1919, is the only state-owned bank in the nation.

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