Missouri Bankers Association President and CEO Max Cook will retire in summer 2023 after more than 30 years of leading the organization.
“It has been an opportunity of a lifetime to lead this great association,” Cook said. “I have been blessed to be part of a wonderful community of bankers who have become dear lifelong friends.”
Cook, who has nearly 47 years of banking industry experience, joined the Jefferson City-based organization in April 1991, becoming the sixth person to lead the organization. He spent the first six years of his career at two Oklahoma banks, where he served in positions ranging from teller to lending officer.
“Our focus at MBA has and will always be on how we can best be an advocate and resource for our members,” Cook said. “I am extremely proud of the remarkable MBA staff and their dedication to the banking community.”
The MBA Board of Directors has appointed Brice Luetkemeyer, president and CEO of the Bank of St. Elizabeth, to chair a search committee of five Missouri bankers overseeing the national recruitment of the association’s next leader. The committee will make its recommendation to the MBA board of directors in spring 2022. The selected candidate will work alongside Cook until his retirement.