By KRWG News
New Mexico – SANTA FE, N.M. (KRWG) Gov. Susana Martinez has named a banking industry executive from Albuquerque to run a state financial regulatory agency.
Cynthia Richards' appointment as Financial Institutions Division director was announced Monday by Regulation and Licensing Superintendent J. Dee Dennis Jr.
Richards replaces Bill Verant, who was ousted earlier this year after Martinez took office.
Richards will receive an annual salary of $90,000. She starts her new job on July 25.
The agency regulates more than 5,000 financial institutions, including state chartered banks, credit unions, mortgage companies and loan brokers.
Richards has nearly 30 years of experience in banking, and has served as a vice president of American Bank in Rio Rancho as well as Western Bank and First Community Bank in Albuquerque.
Copyright 2011 The Associated Press. KRWG