BUFFALO, N.Y., Jan. 24, 2012 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- First Niagara Financial Group (Nasdaq:FNFG) recently named Richard Barry as Chief Credit Officer. Barry will report to First Niagara President and Chief Executive Officer John R. Koelmel and will succeed current Chief Credit Officer Kevin O'Bryan, who has announced his intention to retire later in 2012.
"We are very pleased to add Rich and his tremendous credit, banking and leadership skills to the First Niagara team," said Koelmel. "As we further deepen our presence across our regional footprint, in this challenging economic and regulatory environment, his experience is important to our perpetuating the best-in-class credit results and outcomes we achieved under Kevin's leadership and oversight. As the company has evolved from its thrift roots to a full-service commercial bank over the last five years, Kevin has very ably worked with our lending teams to build out our loan portfolio, effectively balancing risk management considerations and our customer relationship focus."
Barry joins First Niagara with more than 25 years of leadership experience in credit and banking, most recently with Citizens Financial Group, where he served as Chief Credit Officer for Wholesale Banking. He also served as Market Executive for the company's Connecticut region. Prior to Citizens, Barry held a series of leadership positions in lending and credit with BayBank and Fleet.
Barry earned a BS in Finance from Bentley University and an MBA from Babson College. A New England native and a resident of Connecticut, Barry will be based in First Niagara's New Haven, CT office.
O'Bryan will continue with the company through year-end, working with Barry to ensure a smooth transition and otherwise supporting the credit risk management function.
About First Niagara
First Niagara, through its wholly owned subsidiary, First Niagara Bank, N.A., is a multi-state community-oriented bank that currently has approximately $31 billion in assets, $19 billion in deposits, more than 330 branches and 5,000 employees providing financial services to individuals, families and businesses across Upstate New York, Pennsylvania, Connecticut and Massachusetts. For more information, visit www.firstniagara.com.