Bank insider Cheryl Knight is the new CEO and president of Santa Clara Valley Bank, the firm said Nov. 17.

Knight joined the Santa Paula-based bank in October 2010 as a chief credit officer and senior vice president. She also held the position of chief operating officer when she was named CEO.

Before joining Santa Clara, Knight was with Montecito Bank & Trust and First California Bank. She has held several management positions at other financial institutions, including Union Bank and Wells Fargo and worked at Deloitte & Touche as a financial management consultant. She has lived in Ventura for more than 13 years and is a director of the California Reinvestment Corp., a nonprofit that finances financing low- and moderate-income housing in the area.

Former Santa Clara CEO Michael Hause resigned from the bank in July to take a management position with avocado marketer Calavo Growers.

The bank ended last year $568,000 in the red, but has earned $384,000 through the first nine months of this year. With $132.5 million in assets as of March 2011 and two branches in the region, it is one of the smaller banks based in the Tri-Counties.