California's First Entertainment Credit Union Appoints New CEO

Stephen Owen will become president/CEO of the $2.1 billion First Entertainment Credit Union in Hollywood, Calif., the board of directors said last week.

He will succeed Charles Bruen, who was named interim CEO in February after replacing Lisa Landt, who was First Entertainment’s CEO from 2020 to the end of last year, according to NCUA profile reports.

Owen will be joining First Entertainment from the $14.9 billion First Tech Federal Credit Union in San Jose, where he served as chief retail and marketing officer. He also worked as COO for the $9 billion OnPoint Community Credit Union in Portland, Ore., and was a consumer market executive for Bank of America, his LinkedIn professional profile page showed.

“We found the right leader in Stephen Owen after an extensive search with many very qualified candidates,” First Entertainment Board Chair Howard Welinsky said in a prepared statement. “Stephen stood out amongst the best. He has a proven track record of financial expertise and experience in retail banking and embraces the credit union ‘people helping people’ philosophy. With his passion for enhancing the member experience, we will be able to continue to grow and promote financial wellness to our creative community. We look forward to many successful years with Stephen leading the credit union.”

First Entertainment’s 229 employees operate nine branches serving nearly 90,000 members.