First Hawaiian’s Ono retiring after 38 years

Raymond Ono, vice chairman and chief banking officer for First Hawaiian Bank, will retire July 1 after a 38-year career.

Executive Vice President Mitchell Nishimoto, who has served as the bank’s chief risk officer for the past two years, will succeed Ono as executive vice president in charge of the Retail Banking group.

“Ray has been an exceptional leader, mentor and friend to many of us during his 38 years with the bank,” First Hawaiian Chairman and CEO Bob Harrison said Tuesday.

Ono, 62, joined First Hawaiian in 1978 and started in the loan management training program. He has held leadership positions in the Business Banking, Wealth Management and Retail Banking groups. Ono was promoted to vice chairman in 2007. For the last seven years, he has overseen the bank’s entire network of 62 retail branches in Hawaii, Guam and Saipan.

“Working at First Hawaiian has been an incredible journey for me, professionally and personally,” Ono said. “Throughout my career it has always been the people that mattered to me most, both customers and team members. I want to thank every one of them for being a part of my tenure at First Hawaiian. I am confident that together we have made a difference in growing the bank and in supporting our community, and I look forward to the next generation of leaders to achieve even greater success.”

Nishimoto, 52, spent 28 years in the Retail Banking group, including managing the Kapiolani and Maui banking regions, before becoming chief risk officer.

First Hawaiian is the largest bank in the state with $19.1 billion in assets.