Dime Community Bancshares, Inc., the parent company of Dime Community Bank, announced Kevin M. O’Connor will step down as CEO effective Aug. 31 and that Stuart H. Lubow, the company’s current President and Chief Operating Officer, will succeed O’Connor as CEO.
O’Connor will continue to serve on the Board of Directors until Dec. 31, 2023. Lubow will be added to the Board of Directors simultaneous with his appointment as CEO.
O’Connor has been CEO of the Company since Bridge Bancorp, Inc. (Bridge) and Dime Community Bancshares, Inc. (Dime) merged on Feb. 1, 2021 (the Merger). Before the Merger, O’Connor was President and CEO of Bridge. He joined Bridge in October 2007 as President and Chief Executive Officer and director. Lubow has been President and Chief Operating Officer of the Company since the Merger. Before the Merger, Lubow served as President of Dime. Before joining Dime in 2017, Lubow was a founder, Chairman, President, and CEO of each of Community National Bank and Community State Bank. Lubow has prior community bank CEO experience of over 17 years.
"Under Kevin’s leadership, we successfully completed a transformational merger, creating the premier business bank on Greater Long Island, driving superior financial results for shareholders and providing tremendous support to our customers and communities," said Executive Chairman, Kenneth J. Mahon, on behalf of the Company's and Bank's Boards of Directors. "We are grateful for Kevin’s strong leadership and are very excited to promote Stu Lubow to CEO. The appointment of Stu as CEO has been under consideration since the beginning of the year and is the culmination of a thoughtful and well-planned succession process. Stu has a proven track record throughout his career of delivering value for customers and shareholders alike. Most recently, he was instrumental in the hiring and onboarding of seven deposit- focused Groups that are already contributing to significant customer growth. The Board of Directors is confident that he will provide a steady, uninterrupted mission and culture of service to our staff and customers. Having admirably weathered the challenges caused by the recent bank failures, evidenced by an increase in deposits on a year-to-date basis, we believe now is the ideal time to execute on the succession plan. We are very excited about our future under Stu’s leadership.”
“I applaud and congratulate the accomplishments of our entire team and am proud of what we have built together. Our focus on developing and strengthening relationships while supporting and serving our communities has served our constituents well, leading to our recognition as the preeminent community bank in our footprint,” said O’Connor. “I want to thank and commend all of my colleagues, past and present, and personally wish Stu and the entire Dime team well. I have full confidence that they will reach greater heights as they continue building on our past successes.”
“I am thankful for the opportunity the Board has granted me to lead Dime and would also like to express my gratitude to Kevin for his leadership and support over the years,” said Lubow. “Dime has a proud history of being rooted in the communities we serve, and I look forward to working with all of our dedicated employees to add value to our customers and our shareholders. I will draw upon my prior CEO experience to lead Dime into the next chapter of our growth as the preeminent community bank in our footprint.”