Bruce Van Saun

Bruce Van Saun, chairman and CEO of Citizens Financial Group Inc. since October 2013, has been particularly busy for the last two-and-a-half years.

In his short tenure at the helm of the largest bank based in Rhode Island, Van Saun has led the company through an initial public offering and a spinoff from The Royal Bank of Scotland PLC more than one year ahead of schedule.

Van Saun’s success at extricating the bank from RBS was made possible by solid management and hard-driving strategic and organic growth. With $138.2 billion in assets, Citizens reported 2015’s net income grew 10.3 percent to $871 million (after removing the effects of the 2014 divestiture of some Chicago-area operations and restructuring charges).

The bank won a vote of appreciation from Gov. Gina M. Raimondo when it announced plans this year to build a new corporate campus in Johnston and consolidate 3,200 employees now located in East Providence, Smithfield and Warwick. The facility will feature office and meeting space, a call center and executive offices, along with such amenities as dining, fitness and retail facilities for employees.

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Van Saun has said Citizens is working hard in a competitive environment to attract and hire top-tier bankers of a caliber that might not have chosen Citizens before it became a public entity.

“We have met or exceeded financial expectations every quarter since our IPO last year,” Van Saun said in late 2015. It looks like thanks to Van Saun, Citizens is continuing its momentum. •

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