On March 26 Pioneer Bank held a ‘happy retirement’ luncheon for CEO, Stephen Puntch. He is retiring after 35 years at Pioneer Bank. He has seen a lot change in banking over the years and will continue to help Pioneer Bank move forward on the Board of Directors.
Puntch received his BBA in 1978 from Texas Christian University, Ft Worth Texas. He began his career in finance as an investment advisor with the New York investment banking firm Bache Halsey Stuart and Shields in 1980. Puntch joined Pioneer Bank in 1984 as Assistant Vice President responsible for mortgage loan secondary marketing. He was promoted to Vice President in 1985 and Senior Vice President in 1987, as his responsibilities were expanded to include management of the growing mortgage backed securities investment portfolio of Pioneer Bank. In 2003, Puntch was elected as a voting member of the Board of Directors and in 2004 he was promoted to Executive Vice President. In April 2017 he was appointed to his current position of Chief Executive Officer of Pioneer Bank.
In recent years, the banking industry has undergone many changes and Puntch was instrumental in favorably positioning Pioneer by recognizing, in advance, the speculative economic conditions that resulted in the subsequent national financial crisis and economic recession in 2008. During his career with Pioneer, the Bank has grown in assets from $185 million in 1984 to over $800 million today, supporting eleven banking branches throughout Southern New Mexico.
Puntch currently serves as a board member of the New Mexico Bankers Association and will continue to serve as a voting member on the Board of Directors of Pioneer Bank. He and his wife Bonnie have been married for 31 years and have two sons Stephen, of Roswell NM and Taylor, of Dallas TX.