Patriot Bank Names New CEO

STAMFORD, CT — Patriot National Bancorp Inc., the parent company of Patriot Bank, N.A., announced this week Robert Russell Jr. has been named president and CEO of both the bank and its parent company, Patriot.

According to a statement released Monday, Russell joins Patriot from Millington Bank of Morris and Somerset Counties of New Jersey, where he served as executive vice president and chief operating officer. (To sign up for Stamford breaking news alerts and more, click here.)

Russell comes to the role with more than 30 years of community banking experience, having previously served as president and chief executive officer of NJM Bank and, prior to that, served as its chief financial and investment officer.

Patriot Chariman Michael Carrazza said he was pleased to welcome Russell to lead the company's team.

"Mr. Russell has a strong community banking track record that overlaps with the leadership Patriot needs to continue its growth and unlock the intrinsic value of Patriot's banking franchise," Carrazza said in a statement. "His skill set and the community banking experience he brings will allow us to continue building our franchise and enhance the banking services and experiences for our clients."

Patriot is headquartered in Stamford and operates nine branch locations in Darien, Fairfield, Greenwich, Milford, Norwalk, Orange, Stamford and Westport, as well as Scarsdale, N.Y.

"I am excited to be joining the Patriot Bank team," Russell said in a statement, "having watched its consistent growth and performance over recent years and its current positioning in asset classes and technology. Patriot has cultivated very strong ties to the communities that it serves, with assets, loans and deposits all growing 25 percent or better over the last three years. The institution has invested significantly to build new platforms in customer-focused technologies, deposit gathering strategies and SBA lending. It's a great opportunity to leverage these investments and lead Patriot to its next level."

Patriot also offers express banking locations in Bridgeport, downtown New Haven and Trumbull, and maintains SBA lending offices in Stamford and Jacksonville, Fla., along with a Rhode Island operations center.