By Jeff McKinney
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Stephen Schrantz, who helped build Fifth Third Bancorp's commercial banking unit into one of the Cincinnati banking giant's most profitable operations, is stepping down.

He will be replaced by Robert Sullivan, 49, executive vice president of Fifth Third Processing Solutions, the company's data-processing unit formerly known as Midwest Payment Systems.

Schrantz, 55, plans to retire this year after nearly 30 years with the parent of Fifth Third Bank, Greater Cincinnati's largest bank.

Since becoming executive vice president of Fifth Third's commercial banking unit in 1989, Schrantz helped increase loans in that unit from about $2.4 billion to almost $25 billion in 2003. Moreover, Fifth Third's commercial deposits have grown 15-fold, and fee income from that business has risen 22-fold during that period, the bank said.

Commercial banking accounts for about 30 percent of Fifth Third's annual profits, which totaled $1.75 billion last year.

Schrantz said he plans to spend more time with family, travel and serve on local nonprofit boards.

The bank has picked a successor for Sullivan to run its data-processing unit, but will not announce its choice until this summer.

E-mail jmckinney@enquirer.com