Florida Financial Services Acting Commissioner, Alex Hager, Takes Shareholder Position with Saltmarsh, Cleaveland & Gund

6/30/2009 - By Zachary Farrington

After serving the State of Florida for more than 30 years, Acting Commissioner of the Florida Office of Financial Regulation, Alex Hager, recently joined Saltmarsh, Cleaveland & Gund, a Florida accounting firm, as a Shareholder in the firm’s Financial Institution Advisory Group. In his new position, Hager will assist banks with informal and formal enforcement actions, serve as an expert witness and consult on mergers and acquisitions to facilitate directives from federal and state bank regulators. “My decision to join Saltmarsh underscores a desire to help bankers resolve problems and complexities created by the most severe economic downturn since the market crash of 1929,” said Hager. “I am extremely proud of our industry and the services provided by Florida’s community banks to consumers and small businesses.”

Saltmarsh, Cleaveland & Gund’s Financial Institution Advisory Group works with bank clients, primarily in the Southeast, which range in size from $20 million to more than $1 billion in assets. Shareholders in the Group provide financial institutions with audit, accounting, taxation, and advisory services. “We strive to help banks work through intricate regulatory actions so they can focus on taking care of banking needs in the community,” said Bill Massey, CPA, CFSA and Shareholder in Saltmarsh’s Financial Institution Advisory Group. “Mr. Hager embraces the dedication to service and integrity required to successfully assist banks during these challenging times. We are thrilled to tap into his experience to ease regulatory issues for financial institutions.”

Hager has already demonstrated his level of commitment to the financial industry by participating in the Florida Banking Association (FBA) Conference in Orlando and the CenterState Bank Investment Conference in Destin. He is slated to speak on Dealing with a Formal Regulatory Agreement at PKF, an International Association of CPA Firms, Financial Institution Forum in Chicago at the end of July. He looks forward to assisting current Saltmarsh clients and other financial institutions in need of regulatory consultation.