Signature Bank Names Two Private Client Banking Teams to Its Growing Network

Signature Bank (Nasdaq: SBNY), a New York-based full-service commercial bank, announced today the appointment of two private client banking teams to its growing network.

Mohammed Omar Kamil was named Group Director and Senior Vice President of a three-person team based from Signature Bank’s private client office in Borough Park, Brooklyn, N.Y. Over the years, the team worked together at JP Morgan Chase in the Borough Park section of Brooklyn, prior to joining Signature Bank.

Most recently, Kamil served as Vice President, Relationship Manager III, catering to a broad business clientele, including professional services firms and real estate entities. During his 8+-year tenure at Chase, Kamil held a range of roles with increasing responsibility including various relationship management level positions, branch manager, business banker and sales manager.

Eric Shabat was appointed to the role of Associate Group Director and Vice President. Prior, Shabat was a Relationship Banker and Business Specialist, where, in this capacity, he managed a solid book of business clients while also focusing on business development.

Aviram Ohaion is the team’s Senior Client Associate. Ohaion joins from Capital One in Brooklyn, where he served as a Relationship Banker, servicing and meeting client needs of businesses and high-net-worth individuals. Earlier, he worked with the team when he served as Relationship Banker at Chase at the same branch in Brooklyn as Kamil and Shabat.

Another team headed by Avraham (Avi) Azuolay, who was named Group Director and Senior Vice President, joins from Hudson Valley Bank, which recently merged with Sterling Bancorp.

The five-person team, which is based at Signature Bank’s private client office at 261 Madison Avenue in Manhattan, all worked together for 10 years and also includes: Ronald J. Sylvestri and Arlene DeBenedictis, each of who were named Associate Group Director and Vice President, along with Jenny Panora and Wilfred Rivera, both appointed Senior Client Associates.

Azuolay, with 15 years of banking experience, spent the past 10 years at Hudson Valley Bank as Senior Vice President and Team Leader of the Legal Services Group in New York City, focused on business development for banking services, such as escrow services, commercial and insurance lines and loans, commercial real estate loans and commercial and personal deposit accounts. Earlier, he was a Relationship Manager for Bank of America (BOA)/Fleet Bank.

Sylvestri brings more than 35 years of banking experience to his role. Most recently, for 13 years, he was Senior Vice President and Regional Manager at Hudson Valley Bank, handling business development across commercial and residential clients, and catering to the financial services needs of non-profit organizations. Prior, he spent 14 years at BOA/Fleet as Vice President – Investment Services.

With 40 years of banking experience, DeBenedictis was previously Branch Area Manager and First Vice President for 21 years at her previous employer where she managed operations of five branches while developing and maintaining client relationships, particularly in the professional services arena.

Panora spent her entire 11-year banking career at Hudson Valley Bank. Most recently, she was Assistant Branch Area Manager-Officer, serving commercial clients. Rivera worked for 12 years at the same institution as Business Operations Manager, supporting daily banking operational functions.

“We continue to capitalize on opportunities available for attracting the top bankers throughout the metropolitan New York-area marketplace. The appointment of these two new teams is indicative of both the continued opportunity that exists from consolidation in the marketplace as well as the Bank’s increasing growth and presence. Of late, more and more bankers are looking to join Signature Bank, based on the reputation we have built. And, the Bank continues to be well positioned to grow organically through the hiring of bankers that join as teams, providing a single point of contact to clients and by leveraging our efficiencies. This translates into the carefully planned expansion we have undergone since our inception 14 years ago,” said Signature Bank President and Chief Executive Officer Joseph J. DePaolo.

About Signature Bank

Signature Bank, member FDIC, is a New York-based full-service commercial bank with 29 private client offices throughout the New York metropolitan area, including those in Manhattan, Brooklyn, Westchester, Long Island, Queens, the Bronx, Staten Island and Connecticut. The Bank’s growing network of private client banking teams serves the needs of privately owned businesses, their owners and senior managers.

Signature Bank offers a wide variety of business and personal banking products and services. Its specialty finance subsidiary, Signature Financial, LLC, provides equipment finance and leasing. Signature Securities Group Corporation, a wholly owned Bank subsidiary, is a licensed broker-dealer, investment adviser and member FINRA/SIPC, offering investment, brokerage, asset management and insurance products and services.

Since commencing operations in May 2001, the Bank has grown to $28.6 billion in assets, $24.0 billion in deposits, $2.6 billion in equity capital and $3.6 billion in other assets under management as of March 31, 2015. Signature Bank's Tier 1 and risk-based capital ratios are significantly above the levels required to be considered well capitalized.

Signature Bank was named the Best Bank in America by Forbes for 2015 and the only large cap bank to appear on Forbes’ list of America’s 50 Most Trustworthy Financial Companies. Signature Bank also was voted Best Business Bank by the New York Law Journal in the publication’s fifth annual reader survey; named the nation’s fifth top-performing bank by ABA Banking Journal; and ranked seventh on Bank Director magazine’s 2014 Bank Performance Scorecard for banks with assets between $5 and $50 billion.

For more information, please visit www.signatureny.com.

This press release and oral statements made from time to time by our representatives contain "forward-looking statements" within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 that are subject to risks and uncertainties. You should not place undue reliance on those statements because they are subject to numerous risks and uncertainties relating to our operations and business environment, all of which are difficult to predict and may be beyond our control. Forward-looking statements include information concerning our future results, interest rates and the interest rate environment, loan and deposit growth, loan performance, operations, new private client teams and other hires, new office openings and business strategy. These statements often include words such as "may," "believe," "expect," "anticipate," "intend," “potential,” “opportunity,” “could,” “project,” “seek,” “should,” “will,” would,” "plan," "estimate" or other similar expressions. As you consider forward-looking statements, you should understand that these statements are not guarantees of performance or results. They involve risks, uncertainties and assumptions that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in the forward-looking statements and can change as a result of many possible events or factors, not all of which are known to us or in our control. These factors include but are not limited to: (i) prevailing economic conditions; (ii) changes in interest rates, loan demand, real estate values and competition, any of which can materially affect origination levels and gain on sale results in our business, as well as other aspects of our financial performance, including earnings on interest-bearing assets; (iii) the level of defaults, losses and prepayments on loans made by us, whether held in portfolio or sold in the whole loan secondary markets, which can materially affect charge-off levels and required credit loss reserve levels; (iv) changes in monetary and fiscal policies of the U.S. Government, including policies of the U.S. Treasury and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; (v) changes in the banking and other financial services regulatory environment and (vi) competition for qualified personnel and desirable office locations. Although we believe that these forward-looking statements are based on reasonable assumptions, beliefs and expectations, if a change occurs or our beliefs, assumptions and expectations were incorrect, our business, financial condition, liquidity or results of operations may vary materially from those expressed in our forward-looking statements. Additional risks are described in our quarterly and annual reports filed with the FDIC. You should keep in mind that any forward-looking statements made by Signature Bank speak only as of the date on which they were made. New risks and uncertainties come up from time to time, and we cannot predict these events or how they may affect the Bank. Signature Bank has no duty to, and does not intend to, update or revise the forward-looking statements after the date on which they are made. In light of these risks and uncertainties, you should keep in mind that any forward-looking statement made in this release or elsewhere might not reflect actual results.

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