Lance Drummond named new chair at Freddie Mac

Lance Drummond, a former executive at TD Canada Trust, will become the nonexecutive chair of Freddie Mac's board of directors in February.

Current chair Sara Mathew will leave then as she will reach the time limit to be on the board as specified by the company's bylaws.

The shift in board leadership comes at the same time it is looking for a successor to current CEO Michael DeVito, who is planning to retire in the first quarter.

"Lance and I have worked side-by-side on Freddie Mac's board for a number of years, and his deep knowledge of the company, understanding of its employees and dedication to the company's mission make him an outstanding choice to serve as the next board chair," Mathew said in a press release. "I look forward to working closely with Lance for the remainder of my term and I wish him — and Freddie Mac — nothing but the best as the company continues serving its critically important role in the mortgage market."

Drummond became a member of the Freddie Mac board in 2015, following his retirement from the Toronto-based bank in December 2014.

At TD Canada Trust, Drummond served as executive vice president, operations and technology, where he oversaw personal and small business loan underwriting, funding, discharges, deposit operation, fraud management, collections, digitization and image management, service quality and project management office services, his LinkedIn profile said.

(TD is short for Toronto Dominion Bank, a company that also has retail banking offices on the east coast of the U.S.)

Prior to that, Drummond was executive vice president of human resources and shared services at Fiserv, and also held several executive positions at Bank of America between 2002 and 2008.

In addition, Drummond was chief operating officer at Eastman Kodak from 1998 to 2002; he was with that company for over 26 years.

He is currently chair of the Freddie Mac board's compensation and human capital committee. He also serves as a member of the executive, audit and operations, and technology committees.

Mathew joined the Freddie Mac board in 2013, and became chair in February 2019 following the retirement of Christopher Lynch, who also reached the time limit allowed for board service.

"On behalf of FHFA, I wish to express my deep appreciation to Sara Mathew for her decade of service to Freddie Mac," agency Director Sandra Thompson said in the government-sponsored enterprise's press release. "Under her leadership, Freddie Mac became a stronger, more focused company that serves its mission by supporting affordable housing, reducing risks, building financial stability and growing talent."