First Commonwealth Bank Announces Entry into Equipment Finance Business
INDIANA, Pa., June 14, 2021 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — First Commonwealth Bank announced today that they will enter the equipment leasing and finance business with the addition of Rob Boyer to its executive team as President of First Commonwealth Equipment Finance Group.
Boyer brings a wealth of industry knowledge with 26 years in the equipment finance space as he starts, develops and leads the Bank’s entry into the small ticket equipment finance business.
T. Michael Price, CEO of First Commonwealth, states that, “It is an honor to have someone with Rob’s experience on our team. As an icon in the industry, Rob brings vast experience in running an autonomous, multi-faceted equipment finance business seamlessly within a banking environment.”
In addition to Boyer’s robust knowledge of the business and vast network of industry contacts, he is currently a Board Director and Vice Chairman of the Equipment Leasing and Finance Association (ELFA) and has previously chaired its Membership Committee and Small Ticket Business Council Steering Committee. He has also served as a Director for the Certified Leasing and Finance Professional Foundation.
“The ‘people and customer first’ culture of First Commonwealth, along with its scale and aggressive growth goals, are what attracted me to starting an entirely new business line for First Commonwealth,” Boyer said. “The executive team truly walk the talk from a culture perspective and were great to work with in developing the strategy into action.”
Price said the Bank’s entry into the equipment leasing and finance business is a strategic initiative that is consistent with First Commonwealth’s goal to be the best bank for business. They like the granularity it will add to their commercial portfolio and the financing opportunities it opens up in favorable geographies.
The company’s entry into the business follows the pattern of the bank’s successful de novo entry into the mortgage business in 2014 and its organic expansion of its SBA and indirect auto businesses, as well as its successful integration of five acquisitions in that time frame. The equipment finance business is expected to break even late in 2022, after which it is expected to provide a meaningful contribution to the company’s earnings and continue the track record of positive operating leverage.
The equipment leasing and financing division will be headquartered in suburban Philadelphia.
About First Commonwealth Financial Corporation
First Commonwealth Financial Corporation (NYSE: FCF), headquartered in Indiana, Pennsylvania, is a financial services company with 119 community banking offices in western and central Pennsylvania and throughout Ohio, as well as business banking centers in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and Canton, Cincinnati, Cleveland and Columbus, Ohio. The company also operates mortgage offices in Wexford, Pennsylvania, as well as Hudson, Lewis Center and Youngstown, Ohio. First Commonwealth provides a full range of commercial banking, consumer banking, mortgage, wealth management and insurance products and services through its subsidiaries First Commonwealth Bank and First Commonwealth Insurance Agency. For more information about First Commonwealth or to open an account today, please visit www.fcbanking.com.
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