Former M&T Vice Chairman Michael Pinto Dies

M&T Bank (MTB) in Buffalo announced that former vice chairman Michael Pinto has died.

Pinto, 58, passed away Tuesday after an extended illness, M&T said in a press release. Before stepping down from the company in January because of health issues, Pinto had also been chairman and chief executive of M&T's mid-Atlantic division.

Pinto spent his entire career at M&T, joining the bank in 1985 after receiving his Master of Business Administration from The Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania. He went on to rise through the company's ranks, becoming controller in 1993 and chief financial officer in 1996. He joined the boards of M&T and its bank in 2003.

"M&T has lost a great friend and a great leader, but [Pinto's] contributions to our company have not ended. Indeed, his impact and influence will continue long into the future," Robert Wilmers's chairman and CEO, said in the release.

Pinto "helped build M&T — not just in size, but in strength and stability as well," Wilmers added. The former vice chairman served as "both a conscience and a compass" during his time at M&T, "while playing a leading role in charting the course of the bank's strategic direction."