Bay Banks hires veteran lender for key regional post

Bay Banks of Virginia in Kilmarnock has hired a veteran banker to oversee its operations around Richmond, Va.

The $487 million-asset Bay Banks said in a press release Wednesday that it had hired Gary Armstrong to serve as its Richmond market executive. Armstrong has spent the past 19 years in executive roles at Richmond-area banks, most recently as Richmond market president for the $3.2 billion-asset Park Sterling Bank in Charlotte, N.C.

Armstrong had been chief lending officer at First Capital Bank in Henrico, Va., before its sale to Park Sterling last year.

“The vision is to bring a true community bank feel and customer experience to central Virginia,” Armstrong said in the release.

Last year Bay Banks agreed to buy Virginia Commonwealth Bank in Petersburg, Va.; that deal is expected to close later this quarter. The institution, which will have assets of more than $800 million, will move its headquarters to Richmond.