Provident Bank Launches Commercial Banking Teams in New York City Market

MONTEBELLO, NY--(Marketwire - Jan 20, 2012) - Provident Bank, a subsidiary of Provident New York Bancorp (NYSE: PBNY), announced today that four commercial banking teams have been established in New York City and named the leaders of those teams. All four teams will operate out of their midtown Manhattan office. "We have established strong teams with proven track records of delivering superior service to their clients," said Jack Kopnisky, President and CEO of Provident Bank. "We look forward to the contributions these teams will make to our expanding franchise."

Provident Bank recently announced that it had reached a definitive agreement to acquire Gotham Bank of New York. These new banking teams will be teamed with legacy Gotham Bank relationship teams to form a strong middle-market focused franchise in New York City once the transaction closes, which is expected in the third calendar quarter of 2012.

Louis J. De Luca was named Senior Vice President and Senior Managing Director and will lead one of the four commercial lending teams. Louis' successful banking career spans over 30 years. He most recently served as Executive Vice President of the New York Region for TriState Capital Bank. Prior to joining TriState Capital Bank, Mr. De Luca was Senior Vice President and Team Leader of Middle Market Lending at Amalgamated Bank and Capital One/North Fork Bank. Nicholas C. Tavantzis was named Senior Vice President and Managing Director and is joining Mr. DeLuca's team. Nicholas, also a seasoned banker for 30 years, most recently served as Senior Vice President, Business Banking at Capital One/North Fork Bank. Prior to joining Capital One, Mr. Tavantzis, held Vice President positions at PNC Bank, North Fork Bank, and Washington Mutual Bank during his career.

Jeffery Wall was named Senior Vice President and Managing Director and Thomas Kokinias, was also named Senior Vice President and Managing Director. Together Mr. Wall and Mr. Kokinias will lead a commercial banking team. Jeffrey's successful banking career spans over 20 years. Mr. Wall held the position of Senior Vice President at Herald National Bank and Builders Bank and First Vice President and Deputy Senior Lending Officer at The Roslyn Savings Bank during his career. Thomas, also a career banker with over 10 years of experience, previously served as Vice President and Associate Managing Director at Herald National Bank. Prior to joining Herald National Bank, Mr. Kokinias was First Vice President and Director of Nassau for State Bank of Long Island.

Nicole Bonica was named Senior Vice President and Managing Director and will lead a commercial banking team. Ms. Bonica has 10 years in banking and joined Provident Bank from Capital One/North Fork Bank where she served as Senior Vice President, Private Banking.

Gabriel Safdie was named Senior Vice President and Managing Director and will lead a commercial banking team. Mr. Safdie has over 20 years in banking and was previously a Senior Vice President, Private Banking at Capital One/North Fork Bank.

"These four teams are just the beginning of establishing our brand of relationship banking in this marketplace," said David S. Bagatelle, Executive Vice President and New York Metro Market President. "As we deliver superior service and solutions to our clients, we will continue to attract top talent."

Headquartered in Montebello, N.Y., Provident Bank, with $3.1 billion in assets, specializes in the delivery of service and solutions to business owners, their families, and consumers in communities within the greater New York City marketplace through teams of dedicated and experienced relationship managers. Our franchise includes 38 Financial Centers. Provident Bank offers a complete line of commercial, business, and consumer banking products and services. For more information, visit the Provident Bank Web site at www.providentbanking.com.

FORWARD-LOOKING STATEMENTS AND ASSOCIATED RISK FACTORS
Any statements contained herein that are not statements of historical fact, including those that anticipate future growth, may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties that may adversely affect the Company's ability to realize its plans. You should not place undue reliance on these forward-looking statements, which apply only as of the date of this press release. There are a number of important factors described in documents filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission and other factors that could cause the Company's actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by such forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly release the results of any revisions to those forward-looking statements which may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.