Signature Bank in New York said Wednesday that it has opened its first branch on Staten Island and hired two teams of bankers from SI Bank and Trust to serve customers there.
The branch is the 22nd in the New York market for the $6.9 billion-asset Signature. The bank, founded in 2001, has grown to its current size largely by hiring teams of bankers from other institutions with established books of business.
“We have again identified experienced bankers who have dedicated their careers to building and maintaining strong relationships in the local communities they serve,” Joseph J. DePaolo, Signature Bank’s president and chief executive, said in a press release. “We are pleased to have attracted these talented and qualified banking professionals whose deep roots span the entire borough.”
The 12 bankers in the two new private-client teams are led by Terry Marks and Frances Tutone. Ms. Marks has nearly 40 years of banking experience and specializes in serving in nonprofits and small businesses. Ms. Tutone has 30 years of banking experience and expertise in serving corporate clients.
SI Bank is a division of Sovereign Bancorp in Philadelphia, which announced last month that was selling itself to Banco Santander SA. Sovereign inherited SI Bank when it acquired Independence Community Bank of Brooklyn in 2006.
