Eagle Bancorp CFO Faces SEC Probe
Eagle Bancorp CFO Charles Levingston seems to have the guidance of the company’s board as he faces a achievable enforcement action by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Fee.
The SEC has indicated its personnel made a preliminary willpower to recommend fees against Levingston by sending him a so-termed Wells see. The dad or mum corporation of EagleBank disclosed the see Wednesday in an earnings launch.
But Eagle Bancorp CEO Susan Riel mentioned Thursday that the board experienced resolved to have Levingston carry on to provide as CFO.
“The board’s top rated precedence is, as it constantly has been, to act in the finest curiosity of the corporation and the company’s stockholders, and we, and the board, continue being confident in the company’s disclosure controls, precision of its economic reporting, and the professionalism of the company’s finance functionality and staff,” she mentioned in an earnings call.
Levingston has been with the Bethesda, Md., financial institution since 2012 and beforehand labored as a financial institution examiner for the Federal Reserve Banks of Atlanta and Philadelphia.
The earnings launch did not specify what allegations Levingston may be dealing with but mentioned he experienced obtained the Wells see in connection with an SEC investigation that Eagle to start with disclosed in July 2019.
The financial institution has “initiated conversations with the personnel about a possible resolution or settlement of the staff’s investigation with regard to the company” and “any recent workforce and directors,” the launch mentioned.
According to American Banker, the SEC has been investigating Eagle’s ties to former District of Columbia Councilman Jack Evans, who allegedly lobbied for legislation that would be favorable to Eagle immediately after the financial institution hired him as a consultant. He also owned Eagle shares.
Eagle’s co-founder and former CEO Ron Paul abruptly retired in March 2019, citing wellness difficulties.
“The corporation thinks [the investigation] relate[s] to the company’s identification, classification and disclosure of linked social gathering transactions the retirement of sure former officers and directors and the partnership of the corporation and sure of its former officers and directors with a community general public official, amongst other issues,” the earnings launch said.