Jim Reuter comes out of retirement to helm First Interstate in Montana

Veteran banking executive Jim Reuter, who retired earlier this year, is headed back to work. 

The $30.2 billion-asset First Interstate BancSystem in Billings, Montana, said Thursday Reuter would become its president and CEO at the start of November. He will succeed Kevin Riley, who previously announced plans to retire this year.

Reuter retired as president and CEO of the $27.4 billion-asset FirstBank Holding in Lakewood, Colorado, in March. He had been with the bank for nearly four decades and served as CEO since 2017.

“Having spent more than 37 years in the banking industry, Jim is a proven leader with a strong track record of developing and executing strategic growth plans in the community banking space,” Stephen Bowman, First Interstate’s chairman, said in a press release.

“His deep knowledge of our footprint, command of the regulatory and risk environment, and ability to implement organic growth initiatives that add value to clients and shareholders alike positions us well for future success,” Bowman added.

During Reuter’s time as CEO of FirstBank, it grew its assets by more than $10 billion. FirstBank President Kevin Classen took the CEO reins as well when Reuter stepped down.

First Interstate is also a high-growth company, both organically and through acquisitions. It has doubled in size over the past five years.

“I’m energized by the growth momentum and position of strength that First Interstate has built over the last several years and am excited to partner with the board of directors and the entire leadership team to continue advancing the company forward,” Reuter said in the release.

Riley announced his retirement in June, with the intention to stay on until a successor was hired.

His retirement announcement came about two years after First Interstate completed the biggest deal in company history, acquiring the $13 billion-asset Great Western Bancorp in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, in April 2022.

Riley, who joined Billings, Montana-based First Interstate in 2013 as chief financial officer and was  promoted to CEO two years later, helped grow the company from a $7 billion-asset community bank located in three states to a regional lender four times that size and covering a 14-state footprint.

The company completed seven acquisitions over the past decade, making it among the 20 most active bank buyers since 2015, according to S&P Global Market Intelligence.

First Interstate also acquired the $3.2 billion-asset Cascades Bancorp in Bend, Oregon, in 2017. It completed a total of eight deals during Riley’s 11-year tenure. 

In addition to its home state, First Interstate operates in Arizona, Colorado, Idaho, Iowa, Kansas, Minnesota, Missouri, Nebraska, North Dakota, Oregon, South Dakota, Washington, and Wyoming.

First Interstate reported second quarter net income of $60 million, or 58 cents per share, which compared to a profit of $58.4 million, or 57 cents, for the first quarter, and net income of $67 million, or 65 cents, for a year earlier.

Notably, Riley also did not rule out a return to banking. “This chapter in my career is ending,” Riley said he announced his retirement intentions from First Interstate. “If something comes around that interests me going forward, I’ll take a look at it.”