Citadel Credit Union's 2024 Annual Report

Organizational Transformation

Leadership Enhancements

In 2024, Citadel assembled a new leadership team to gear up for a future filled with strategic growth, community engagement, and operational excellence. With several key appointments, the new senior leadership team brings a blend of deep industry expertise and a shared vision for the future, positioning the credit union to further its mission of providing exceptional service to local members and communities. The new hires joined the rest of the senior leadership team under the leadership of President & CEO Bill Brown:

Chris Palumbo, Chief Risk Officer
Brian Berry, Chief Information Officer
Lucia “Lucy” Bellomia, Chief Retail Officer
Michael Desimone, Chief Lending Officer
Donald Scala, Chief Experience Officer
Philip Faris, Chief Marketing Officer
Sheri Perkins, Chief Wealth Management Officer
Mike Aileo, Chief Human Resources Officer
Bill Brown, President & Chief Executive Officer
Anand Solanki, Chief Financial Officer
Courtney Rowan, Chief Digital and Transformation Officer

New members were also appointed to both the Board of Directors and Supervisory Committee to strengthen governance, business evolution, and community service. Jessica Schuler and Madhav Gopal joined Citadel’s Board of Directors, and Crystal Nguyen and Jennifer Frost were appointed to the Supervisory Committee. Learn more about their appointments here.

Strategic Reorganization

In addition to hiring new senior leaders, we were also focused on business transformation and reorganizing internal talent to maximize member value and support our strategic growth plan.

In an effort to offer better experiences, better delivery, and streamlined processes from end to end, we realigned departments across the organization, including Digital, Product, Data & Analytics, Human Resources, Risk Management, Member Experience, Retail Operations & Support, Philanthropy & Community Engagement, and more. Key roles were identified and filled, such as Community Lending Officer and Chief Commercial Banking Officer, and a culture of accountability and cooperation was reaffirmed through leadership events and employee training resources.

The realignment signals our readiness to continue our legacy of innovation and growth and underscores our commitment to driving member and employee-centric initiatives. In 2025 and beyond, we believe Citadel is poised to achieve new heights, driven by a clear vision for the future and a dedicated team that is focused on innovation, efficiency, and member satisfaction.

Providing Value & Local Connection

In 2024, Citadel was recognized across multiple fronts for providing extraordinary value and regional connection to our members.

For the third consecutive year, we have won “Best Credit Union” in Montgomery County on the 2024 Happening List by Montco Happenings. This ranking celebrates the area’s most beloved businesses, people, events, and organizations, and shows how we’re standing out in our region.

We were also recognized, for the second year in a row, by the Daily Local News’ 2024 Best of Chester County Reader’s Choice award. This award recognizes businesses throughout Chester County and is based on voting from Chester County residents.

As a result of our efforts to become a top financial institution in Southeastern Pennsylvania, Citadel was named as one of America's Best Regional Banks and Credit Unions of 2024 by Newsweek and Plant-A Insights Group. This recognition acknowledges “smaller” institutions for their pivotal role in the financial fabric of their communities and local economies, and for understanding the unique needs of the people they serve.

Our Workplace Culture

Citadel has once again achieved a Great Place to Work certification in 2024, for its comprehensive, competitive benefits and compensation programs, generous paid time off, and robust professional development and training. Great Places to Work collects and analyzes data from a survey of Citadel’s employees each year and publishes national lists such as the “Fortune 100 Best Companies to Work for.”

In 2024, we brought on 99 new hires bringing our total number of employees to 567. As a not-for-profit community organization driven by innovation, Citadel will continue to offer a unique culture of people-first for our employees.

President’s Council

Our President’s Council rewards and recognizes employees who go beyond expectations by exceeding their annual sales and service goals in a team atmosphere. We were proud to honor 24 outstanding individuals to this prestigious community in 2024.

Commitment to Community

Through a variety of community engagement initiatives, we reaffirmed our commitment to the people of Greater Philadelphia in 2024. We refined the defining pillars of Citadel Cares, our corporate giving program, to better align with our goals of not only supporting our community’s needs but also empowering all those we serve to achieve financial strength. Today's pillars include Financial Literacy, Education, Community & Economic Development, and Health & Wellness. Guided by these pillars, we supported non-profits and causes across the region through employee volunteerism, charitable donations, and the development of new programs and job opportunities.

Financial Summary

Fully documented in the 2024 Financials, Citadel experienced a 20-year cumulative annualized growth rate (CAGR) of $11.4% percent between 2004 and 2024. Over the past three years, Citadel’s overall asset growth was $1.5 billion. Since 2005, Citadel experienced its most significant growth—over $5.1 billion in assets, as the company has expanded to serve the broader Greater Philadelphia region beyond its early roots in Chester County.

Executive Committee, Board of Directors, & Supervisory Committee

Executive Committee & Board of Directors

Claudia Hellebush, Chairwoman
Joseph A. Petsko, Vice Chairperson
Philip A. Priolo, III, Treasurer
Gary P. Rabik, Secretary
Ravi S. Ganti, Member
Joseph R. Glace, Member
Madhav Gopal, Member
Jessica Schuler, Member
Glenn S. Soltis, Member

Supervisory Committee

Citadel’s Supervisory Committee is composed of volunteer members who ensure that Citadel’s financial strength is fairly represented. The committee oversees the internal and external auditors who ensure the credit union is functioning within the guidelines and policies set forth by all regulatory institutions. As an organization, Citadel benefits from the diverse backgrounds of our Supervisory Committee members; we’re able to be more productive and make decisions in a sound manner. This year the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) performed an annual examination and reported that Citadel is in good financial order and in compliance with federal regulations.

Brian O'Neill, Chairperson, Jessica Frost, Secretary, Crystal Nguyen, Member

Looking Ahead

As we move into 2025 and beyond, Citadel will implement new growth strategies that benefit our members, employees, and the community. Under the direction of our senior leadership team, we have committed to a variety of major projects and improvements such as:

• Expanding our branch network into Philadelphia with the opening of three full-service branches within the next three years
• Continuing our commitment to community engagement and member service optimizations
• Launching our new deposit product, Ultimate Growth Checking, to support members through every stage of their financial journey
• Enhancing our commercial banking division with more small business support services and by becoming an SBA lender
• Embracing our ongoing business transformation efforts to create convenience and opportunity for existing and prospective members
• Deploying new digital banking and service enhancements, such as push notifications, early direct deposit, and streamlined direct deposit management in Online Banking through an integration with Pinwheel
• Incorporating artificial intelligence and other technology integrations into our daily processes to improve efficiency

Citadel's dedication to building strength together with members and communities remains at the core of everything we do, and we are in great shape to keep making a difference as we go. As always, we are truly grateful for our members, employees, and partners’ trust in Citadel and for your support as we continue to scale this institution for future growth. Let’s get growing!

2024 Financials

Detailed reports including Citadel’s Statement of Financial Condition, Statement of Income, and Statement of Cash Flow can be viewed and downloaded below.