PROVIDENCE – Eastern Bank has promoted veteran banker Yongmei Chen to lead its Community Development Lending Group, succeeding longtime executive Pamela Feingold, who died in March.
Chen, a senior vice president who has been with Eastern since 2007, has been named commercial group director of the bank’s Community Development Lending Group, the bank announced May 7. She previously worked alongside Feingold for 15 years helping grow the portfolio from under $600 million to more than $2 billion.
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Feingold, who led the unit until her death on March 16, helped build the bank’s nonprofit and affordable housing lending platform into a core business line.
Chen brings more than 30 years of banking experience and specializes in financing for nonprofit organizations, including affordable housing and community revitalization projects.
“We are fortunate to benefit from Yongmei’s deep experience, significant relationships and extensive knowledge in both community development lending and the nonprofit sector to carry forward Pam’s incredible legacy,” said Greg Buscone, executive vice president and chief commercial banking officer at Eastern Bank.
“I am honored and humbled to carry Pam’s legacy forward,” Chen said. “Eastern’s Community Development Lending Group is very well-positioned to continue its leading work in doing what’s right and smart for our business and our communities.”
Chen has been active in the nonprofit and housing finance sector, serving on boards, including the Asian Community Development Corp., Preservation of Affordable Housing, and the Massachusetts Housing Investment Corp. She is also involved with the Citizens’ Housing & Planning Association’s Policy Leadership Council.
The community development lending unit finances affordable housing and nonprofit projects through construction loans, credit facilities, tax credit financing, tax-exempt bonds and related treasury services.
In November, the Boston-based Eastern Bankshares Inc., the parent of Eastern Bank that operates about 125 locations in eastern Massachusetts, Connecticut and New Hampshire, completed its merger with HarborOne Bancorp Inc., parent of Brockton, Mass.-based HarborOne Bank, which had 30 full-service banking centers across Massachusetts and Rhode Island.
The $5.7 billion deal expanded Eastern Bank’s footprint into Rhode Island and boosted its presence in Greater Boston.
Matthew McNulty is a PBN staff writer. He can be reached at McNulty@PBN.com or on X at @MattMcNultyNYC.
