PROVIDENCE – Sovereign Bank today announced that Rhode Island native Steven J. Issa has been named market CEO for the New England South region, overseeing the bank’s business strategy and activities in Rhode Island, Connecticut, western Massachusetts, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket.
Issa previously had served as market CEO for Rhode Island, leading Sovereign’s precious-metals unit, which serves clients throughout the Northeast, and overseeing the bank’s asset-based and specialized-lending groups for Rhode Island. He will continue to supervise those units.
Kevin Flaherty and Bill Hourihan will join Issa’s management team. Flaherty will continue to manage the daily banking activities for Sovereign as market president for Connecticut and western Massachusetts. Hourihan will continue to manage the bank’s activities as market CEO for Nantucket Bank and Bank of Martha’s Vineyard.
Issa, who has 30 years of banking experience, joined Sovereign in 1998, serving as regional president and managing director for the Rhode Island and Southeastern Massachusetts commercial banking group. He previously had held executive positions at FleetBoston Financial and Shawmut Bank. He began his career at the former Old Stone Bank in Providence in 1977.
A resident of Cumberland, Issa has a master’s degree in business administration from Bryant University. He serves on the boards of the Rhode Island Public Expenditure Council, Greater Providence Chamber of Commerce, United Way of Rhode Island and the Business Development Company of Rhode Island, and is a member of the Governor’s Commodore Advisory Committee.
Sovereign Bancorp Inc. (NYSE: SOV), the parent company of Sovereign Bank, is a $90 billion financial institution with nearly 800 community banking offices, more than 2,000 ATMs and about 12,000 employees mostly in the Northeast. For additional information, visit www.sovereignbank.com.
