Robert D. Garner will step down as chief executive officer of Fulton Financial Corp., Lancaster, Pa., at yearend.
He will continue as chairman of the board of the bank holding company. Mr. Garner has been Fulton Financial's CEO since 1982.
Fulton Financial's board of directors has named Rufus A. Fulton Jr., who has been president of the corporation since 1987, as Mr. Garner's successor.
Commenting on his decision to relinquish his CEO duties, Mr. Garner said, "With banking entering a new era of change and opportunity, it is an appropriate time for me to step down from the daily responsibilities of management after more than 40 years in banking."
Under Mr. Garner, Fulton Financial grew from a $545 million-asset institution with 22 offices in three counties, to a $2 billion-asset holding company whose six banking affiliates operate 68 offices in 10 Pennsylvania counties.
