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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Phyllis Campbell to head huge bank’s northwest operations

Phyllis Campbell, a native who toiled for 15 years at Old National Bank in Spokane before moving on to U.S. Bancorp and the Seattle Foundation, has been named head of JP Morgan Chase in the Northwest.   (Courtesy Photo / Courtesy of Darcy Donahoe-Wilmot)
Phyllis Campbell, former Spokane banker and civic activist, has been named chairman of the Pacific Northwest for JPMorgan Chase & Co., the nation’s second-largest bank. JPMorgan Chase acquired Seattle-based Washington Mutual Bank in September as the giant thrift buckled beneath billions of dollars in bad mortgage loans. Campbell said Tuesday that working in a bank of JPMorgan Chase’s stature, and for Chief Executive Officer Jamie Dimon, was an opportunity she could not let pass despite her reluctance to leave The Seattle Foundation, where she has been president for the last six years. “I think it’s a unique time. I think it’s an exciting time,” said Campbell, who began her career in 1973 at Old National Bank in Spokane. She stayed on through its merger with U.S. Bancorp in 1987, moving to Seattle in January 1990 to become executive vice president, and eventually president, of U.S. Bank of Washington. She took over at The Seattle Foundation in 2003. Campbell, 57, graduated from Marycliff High School and Washington State University. She earned her M.B.A. at the University of Washington. While at ONB, Campbell held a number of civic positions, including chairman of the Spokane Valley Chamber of Commerce. She served on the Centennial Trail steering committee and the board of the Momentum economic development group. She has served as a trustee at Whitworth College and on Washington State University’s board of regents. Dimon, in a press release, said Campbell’s success in banking and philanthropy “define true leadership in the community. “We could not have found a better person than Phyllis to lead our expansion of financial services in this important region.” Campbell, who will also join the JPMorgan Chase executive committee, starts April 1. Contact Bert Caldwell at (509) 459-5450 or bertc@spokesman.com.