Financial Services >> CEO Interviews >> March 21, 2011
Richard J. Gavegnano was elected Chairman of the board of East Boston Savings Bank in 2003, having been affiliated with EBSB since 1974 as a Corporator, Trustee and Lead Independent Director. In 2007 Mr. Gavegnano was elected Chairman and CEO of the bank. Prior to his role as Chairman and CEO, Mr. Gavegnano was a Vice President at A.G. Edwards & Sons, Inc., in Peabody, Mass. He began his career with WE Hutton & Co. in New York City, and he has been in the securities business for 37 years. He has developed Burger King Corporation franchises, brought Papyrus specialty card stores to the East Coast with four locations and has been involved with North Shore real estate development. In 2006 Mr. Gavegnano initiated and raised $30 million from investors to form a de novo bank, Hampshire First Bank, headquartered in Manchester, N.H. As of March 31, 2009, Hampshire First Bank had more than $130 million in assets. In 2008 Mr. Gavegnano was the driving force behind the public offering of East Boston Savings Bank, raising over $100 million from investors while increasing the bank's assets to more than $1 billion. In January of 2010 Meridian Interstate Bancorp, Inc., the holding company for East Boston Savings Bank, announced the completion of its acquisition of Mt. Washington Bank. The transaction increased East Boston Savings Bank's deposits from $931 million to $1.2 billion. Mt. Washington's approximately $373 million in deposits in Suffolk County increased East Boston Savings Bank's market share ranking from ninth to fifth in the county, and second in the county amongst institutions headquartered in Massachusetts. The combined organization results in a community bank with 20 full-service branch offices located throughout the Boston metropolitan area. With the acquisition, the Mt. Washington branches became a branch of East Boston Savings Bank and operate under the name Mt. Washington Bank, A Division of East Boston Savings Bank. An East Boston native, Mr. Gavegnano also serves as Chairman and CEO of Meridian Financial Services, Inc., and Meridian Interstate Bancorp, Inc., and he is the Chairman of the board of Hampshire First Bank. He is also President of the East Boston Savings Bank's Charitable Foundation, an organization founded by EBSB in 1998 that benefits nonprofit charitable organizations serving residents of East Boston and several North Shore communities. Profile
TWST: Please begin with a brief background and history of East Boston Savings Bank and Meridian Financial Services.
Mr. Gavegnano: The holding company for the bank is Meridian Financial Services,
