FirstBank parent stays in house for next CFO

Nashville Post
40-year-old has been interim finance chief since spring

AUTHORS Geert De Lombaerde

The leaders of FB Financial have chosen an eight-year company veteran to succeed James Gordon as CFO, who this spring left for a similar job in Texas.

Michael Mettee has been interim finance chief of FB Financial, the parent company of FirstBank, since April. Before that, he was CFO of its banking operations and director of capital markets. The 40-year-old joined FirstBank in 2012 after managing the budget and forecasting process for the retail banking operation of BBVA Compass.

“Michael is an extremely talented leader who brings a strong level of bank and mortgage financial experience to our executive team,” said FirstBank President and CEO Chris Holmes. “Our CFO search committee went through a thorough process and interviewed top candidates nationally using an external search firm. We unanimously agreed that Michael not only brought excellent experience and skills but also was the best fit for us both culturally and strategically.”

Mettee, who earned a finance degree and an MBA degree from the University of Alabama, has in the past served on advisory boards of Freddie Mac and the Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati.

His permanent appointment comes shortly after FB Financial completed its $478 million acquisition of Franklin Financial Network, which grew the company’s asset base to $11 billion. The company now runs 80 offices in Tennessee, South Central Kentucky, North Alabama and North Georgia as well as a national mortgage business across the Southeast.