Provident Bank New York Expands Into Long Island

MONTEBELLO, NY--(Marketwire - Dec 4, 2012) - Provident Bank, a subsidiary of Provident New York Bancorp (NYSE: PBNY), announced today that it has entered Long Island with the hire of a new Commercial Banking team. The addition of this team in Long Island brings the total number of Provident Bank teams dedicated to serving the needs of businesses throughout the greater New York metropolitan area to 17. This new team will operate out of a new office established in Melville.

Steven M. Krauser and Frank J. Sabalja were both named managing directors and will co-lead the new team. Krauser and Sabalja each have extensive banking experience in Long Island and joined Provident Bank from Signature Bank where they led a team that built a significant portfolio of middle market clients, specializing in taxi medallion financing. Krauser and Sabalja have worked together as a team since their working relationship began at North Fork Bank, which was acquired by Capital One Bank.

"Provident Bank has emerged as the best bank for our team due to their relationship strategy which supports the high level of personalized service our clients need," said Mr. Krauser. "We look forward to helping Provident build its presence on Long Island," added Mr. Sabalja.

Two additional hires are part of the new team. Steven Z Reisner, who has nearly 35 years of experience in financial services, was named associate managing director. Prior to working with Krauser and Sabalja at Signature Bank, Mr. Reisner served as a branch manager and business development officer at North Fork Bank. Maria Rutigliano-Rolo was named senior client associate. Ms. Rolo has 10 years experience with North Fork Bank and with the Krauser and Sabalja team at Signature Bank.

"We are pleased to launch our market expansion with this new team that brings great experience and growth potential," said David S. Bagatelle, New York City Metro Market President for Provident Bank and responsible for the expansion into Long Island. "They will play an instrumental role in the launch of this new market and the expansion of our scope of commercial lending capabilities."

The team of Tom Kokinias and Jeffrey Wall, who joined Provident Bank in January of this year, will move to the new office in Melville from their current location at Provident Bank's New York City office. Kokinias and Wall have extensive experience in Long Island and this new office provides a superior location for their team and their clients.

"Long Island is a natural expansion for us," said Jack Kopnisky, president and CEO of Provident Bank. "This new team of Krauser and Sabalja along with our existing team of Kokinias and Wall launches this new market with a strong group of experienced bankers ready to deliver our brand of relationship banking to clients."

Provident Bank, with $4 billion in assets, is a growing financial services firm that specializes in the delivery of service and solutions to business owners, their families, and consumers in communities within the greater New York City metropolitan area through teams of dedicated and experienced relationship managers. Provident Bank offers a complete line of commercial, business, and consumer banking products and services. For more information, visit www.providentbanking.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND ASSOCIATED RISK FACTORS
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