Merchants Bancorp co-founder to retire amid executive shuffle

Carmel-based Merchants Bancorp will see one of its two founders retire in 2018 while two other executives receive promotions.

Merchants, a bank holding company whose subsidiaries include Merchants Bank of Indiana and P/R Mortgage and Investments Corp, announced the leadership changes late Monday.

Co-founder Randall Rogers, 71, who is president and chief operating officer at Merchants Bancorp and chairman of P/R Mortgage, will retire from those positions effective Jan. 1, the company said.

Rogers and Michael Petrie, alums of the former Merchants National Bank in Indianapolis, launched P/R Mortgage in 1990, a year before the bank was acquired by Cleveland-based National City Corp. They decided to revive the Merchants moniker in 2009 after acquiring Greensfork Township State Bank in Lynn and Symphony Bank in Indianapolis.

Michael Dunlap, 51, will move into the roles of president and COO at Merchants Bancorp, while continuing to serve as a Merchants Bancorp director and as president and co-chief operating officer at Merchants Bank.

In conjunction with his promotion, Dunlap’s annual salary will increase to $500,000 and he will be eligible for an annual cash bonus of up to 20 percent of his base salary, according to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission filing.

Petrie, 63, will replace Rogers as P/R Mortgage chairman. Petrie will continue in his current positions as chairman and CEO of both Merchants Bancorp and Merchants Bank.

Petrie will step down as president of P/R Mortgage, to be replaced by Michael Dury. Dury, 32, will continue in his current role as COO of the mortgage firm.

In conjunction with his promotion, Dury’s annual base pay will increase to $110,000.

Rogers won’t entirely step away from the company—he has been appointed vice chairman of Merchants Bancorp and he will continue to serve as a director at P/R Mortgage.

“Messrs. Dunlap and Dury have been instrumental to the growth and success of Merchants and it is with great pleasure that Mr. Rogers and I announce their promotions,” Petrie said in a written statement. “These leadership changes position Merchants to take the next step in expanding strategic initiatives, enabling us to better focus on emerging growth areas. In addition, these actions deepen our executive expertise, allowing natural leadership succession.”

Merchants Bancorp became a publicly traded company last month. Shares were trading at $17.73 Tuesday morning, up 5 cents from Monday’s close.