Bruce Maloch to retire from Farmers Bank & Trust after 40-year career

MAGNOLIA, Ark. — Bruce Maloch, one of the longest-serving and most respected leaders in the 120-year history of Farmers Bank & Trust, is set to retire from banking at the conclusion of 2026.

A lifelong resident of Emerson, Arkansas, Maloch serves as vice chairman and general counsel of Farmers Bank & Trust. He has spent his entire career in Columbia County, joining the bank May 1, 1986.

Over that time, Maloch watched Farmers Bank & Trust grow from about 40 employees and two locations in Magnolia into a regional bank with more than 400 employees, two sister companies and 34 branches across Arkansas, Texas and Oklahoma. He also helped oversee the bank’s assets grow from less than $100 million to almost $3.2 billion today.

“Those early years were both work and fun at the same time,” Maloch said. “The bank’s growth and impact on the communities we serve have allowed me to anticipate coming to work every day for over 40 years.”

Before joining the bank, Maloch worked as an attorney at Anderson, Crumpler, Bell, and Maloch in Magnolia. At 28, he made the move into banking.

His connection to the bank began long before 1986. During the 1971-72 school year, as a ninth-grader working on a project with Future Farmers of America, Maloch asked the bank for a $1,000 loan to buy an Angus cow. The bank approved the request, helping launch his success in FFA, an organization he remains active in today. By the time he graduated from Emerson High School in 1975, he had been elected State FFA President and named State Star Farmer. He also served as a National FFA Officer, which took him to the White House to meet President Jimmy Carter and to 46 states and six foreign countries over the yearlong appointment.

“The loan I got from Farmers Bank as a ninth-grader was more than a legal transaction,” Maloch said. “It enabled me to start a high-quality project that propelled my interest and success in FFA.”

Maloch also served 14 years in the Arkansas State Legislature, first in the House of Representatives for District 4 from 2005 to 2011 and then as state senator for District 12 from 2013 to 2021. He chaired the Joint Budget Committee. Before his election to the legislature, he served 10 years as a Columbia County Justice of the Peace.

Beyond public service, Maloch is a lifelong cattleman, farm advocate and civic leader. He chairs the Arkansas State Fair and Livestock Show Association, the Arkansas Cattlemen’s Foundation and the Arkansas Farm Bureau AgPac board and serves as a board member of the Arkansas FFA Foundation and the Arkansas State Board of Animal Health. In the past, he served as president of the Magnolia-Columbia County Chamber of Commerce and as a board member of the Columbia County Industrial Development Corporation, Abilities Unlimited, the Magnolia Rotary Club and the South Arkansas Development Council.

He is also known as one of the premier auctioneers in Arkansas, developing the skill since 1977 and becoming a familiar voice at junior livestock premium sales and other charitable events across the state.

Maloch has earned many honors, including the Magnolia-Columbia County Chamber of Commerce Citizen of the Year award in 2019. As a legislator, he was named Legislator of the Year by the Arkansas Realtors Association, received Outstanding Legislator honors from the Arkansas Municipal League and was named one of the top 10 legislators by Talk Business magazine.

He is an alumnus of Southern Arkansas University, where he earned a bachelor’s degree in agricultural business in 1980 and a Juris Doctor with honors from the University of Arkansas at Little Rock’s William H. Bowen School of Law. He also completed executive and leadership programs at Georgetown University and Southern Methodist University.

Upon his retirement Dec. 31, Maloch will remain connected to Farmers Bank & Trust as a consultant, advisor and member of the board of directors. He hopes to continue farming and spend more time with his family, including his wife of 47 years, Martha, and their three children and five granddaughters.

“Retirement is bittersweet in some ways, because I will miss daily contact with my Farmers Bank family,” Maloch said. “I have been blessed to work for a bank committed to helping our customers reach their financial and life’s goals, just like it did for me starting in the ninth grade, and one that unselfishly gives back to the communities we serve.”

“I cannot express into words how much Bruce means to Farmers Bank, to this community, and to me as a leader, a mentor, and a visionary,” said Chris Gosnell, chairman, president and CEO of Farmers Bank & Trust. “For 40 years, his wisdom and steady counsel have helped shape who we are and who we will continue to be. On behalf of everyone at Farmers Bank, thank you, Bruce, and thank you for all you have done for others and all you have accomplished over your incredible life and career.”

A public reception celebrating Maloch’s time with the bank will be held from 2 to 4 p.m. Friday, Nov. 6, at the Magnolia Main Branch at 200 E. Main St. Everyone is invited to attend.