Bair one of three Fannie Mae director resigning

Three members of the Fannie Mae board, including former Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair, are resigning. 

Bair, Antony Jenkins and Hugh Frater will step down from the GSE’s board on May 1, Fannie Mae said in a press release. Frater will also retire as Fannie Mae’s CEO, a position he has held since 2019. 

Bair, who joined the board in 2019 and became its chairman a year later, will be succeeded by Michael Hied. Heid was co-president of Wells Fargo Home Mortgage from 2004 to 2011 and the division’s president from 2011 to 2015. 

David Benson, Fannie Mae’s president, will take on the added role of interim CEO and join its board, succeeding Frater. The appointment requires approval from the Federal Housing Finance Agency. 

The board plans to conduct a national search for a permanent CEO. 

“I have found it difficult to meet the substantial time demands of this position while fulfilling my other board and advisory responsibilities,” Bair said in the release. “I am very proud of this organization’s many innovations to promote sustainable homeownership.”