Customers Bank Recruits Private and Commercial Banking Team To Service New York Metro Region

WYOMISSING, Pa., April 4, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- Customers Bank, a $3 billion asset bank, has expanded its presence in the lucrative New York City Metropolitan market by recruiting and expanding upon an entire private and commercial banking team.

George Maroulis was named Executive Vice President and Managing Director. Maroulis will head Customers Bank's Private and Commercial Banking Division in New York. The division will be headquartered in Manhattan and provide services in corporate cash management, commercial and industrial lending, commercial and residential real estate lending, credit cards and merchant processing, business and private personal banking. Customers Bank will have a loan production office in Manhattan.

"We are delighted to have George and his team join Customers Bank and expand our influence in the Greater New York Region," said Richard A. Ehst, President and Chief Operating Officer. "His highly efficient business model clearly puts the Customer first."

Maroulis is a veteran banker that began his career at The Dime Savings Bank of New York in 1990. Previously he was associated with Citibank, Fleet and Bank of American and other notable New York based institutions. In his former engagement as group director and senior vice president, Maroulis managed a highly successful team of commercial, private and personal bankers. Maroulis attended Columbia University in New York City where he studied political science and economics. Maroulis received consumer credit training at The Dime and Citibank and commercial credit training at Fleet Bank and Bank of America, respectively.

Sammy Abdalla joins The Division as Managing Director and Deputy Head. Abdalla most recently was a top performing senior vice president and relationship manager with Capital One Bank. Prior to joining Capital One Abdalla was associated with the former Wachovia Bank, Wells Fargo Bank and worked alongside Maroulis at Bank of America's Global Commercial and Investment Bank Division in New York. He began his commercial banking career as an asset based lender with Textron Financial. Abdalla graduated from Ohio University in Athens, Ohio with a degree in business administration and majors in finance and international business. He also received asset based lending credit training at Textron Financial, and received commercial credit training at Wachovia and Bank of America, respectively.

Peter Douros will assume the position of Senior Vice President and Banking Group Head within The Division. Over the last six years Douros was a successful associate group director and vice president that worked alongside Maroulis. In his former role Douros sourced and managed ultra high net worth individual and corporate client relationships. Douros began his career in 1981 at Oppenheimer and was associated with Sterling National Bank, Union Bank of Switzerland, Dean Witter respectively, and worked alongside Maroulis at Citibank, N.A. Douros graduated from New York University with a degree in history and earned his masters of business administration degree in finance from Fordham University in New York City. Douros successfully completed Citibank's renowned formal credit training program.

Jacob "Jake" Danielski assumed the role of Vice President and Client Manager in The Division. Danielski comes to Customers Bank after seven years with Capital One Bank, where he served in a series of successive roles, most recently as branch business manager, where he was responsible for the growth and retention of over $35 million in business deposits. He earned a bachelor in business administration degree at Baruch College's Zicklin School of Business and also has an AAS degree from the Borough of Manhattan Community College.

Sylvia Wisniewska and Gwendolyn Zaffar each join The Division as Assistant Vice Presidents and Associate Client Managers.

Wisniewska most recently worked for five years alongside Maroulis and Douros as a client associate. Prior to joining forces with Maroulis, Wisniewska was associated with the Polish & Slavic Federal Credit Union.

Zaffar most recently was a sales support associate with Bank of America and worked alongside Maroulis at Bank of America's Global Commercial and Investment Bank Division. Zaffar graduated from the Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University in Tallahassee, FL.

Over the past 12 months, Customers Bank has provided financing for multi-family customers in the New York Metro area totaling $238.5 million, which includes $116.2 million to multi-family buildings located in low-moderate income census tracts within the New York Metro area. Also, Customers Bank provided $3.9 million to community development.

About Customers Bank

Customers Bank is a community-based, full-service bank headquartered in Phoenixville, Pa., with assets of about $3.2 billion.  A member of the Federal Reserve System and deposits insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation ("FDIC"), Customers Bank provides a full range of banking services to small and medium-sized businesses, professionals, individuals and families through branch locations in Pennsylvania, New York and New Jersey. Committed to fostering customer loyalty, Customers Bank uses a High Tech/High Touch strategy that includes use of industry-leading technology to provide customers better access to their money, as well as a continually expanding portfolio of loans to small businesses, multi-family projects, mortgage companies and consumers. Customers Bank is a subsidiary of Customers Bancorp, Inc., a bank holding company based in Wyomissing, Pa.

SOURCE Customers Bank