Dime Community taps Geisel to extend commercial banking push

Thomas Geisel, who spent nearly two years fighting to stabilize Republic First Bancorp in Philadelphia, has joined the Hauppauge, New York-based Dime Community Bancshares as a senior executive vice president. Geisel will be responsible for leading the continued buildout of the $14.4 billion-asset Dime's commercial lending business. 

It's a key role given Dime's ongoing efforts to diversify a balance sheet that's tilted heavily toward multifamily and commercial real estate lending historically. Between 2023 and summer 2024, the company hired 15 banking teams to speed its transformation. There's plenty of work still to be done, though. Multifamily and investor CRE loans still comprised nearly two-thirds of Dime's portfolio as recently as November. 

At the same time, Dime has grown its commercial-and-industrial portfolio at a 12% combined annual growth rate between 2017 and 2024. C&I loans totaled about $1.3 billion on Sept. 30.

Geisel is no stranger to New York's banking market. He oversaw specialty lending and corporate banking at Montebello, New York-based Sterling Bancorp for seven years prior to its February 2022 merger with the $79 billion-asset Webster Financial in Stamford, Connecticut.

"Recruiting Tom is the next logical step in our business plan," Dime Chairman and CEO Stuart Lubow said Thursday in a press release. "Tom has a proven track record as a business leader and he was instrumental in the growth and transformation of Sterling National Bank into a highly profitable $30 billion institution…I look forward to working with him closely as we advance Dime's mission of being the best business bank in New York."

Geisel had  joined Republic First in December 2022, after it had been wracked for more than a year by a bitter struggle involving two activist investor groups that splintered the company's board and forced the exit of former CEO Vernon Hill.  

Geisel implemented a new business plan at Republic First, exiting mortgage banking and cutting costs. But efforts to raise capital proved unsuccessful, while continued battling with one of the investor groups, led by New Jersey insurance executive George Norcross, further drained the struggling company's resources. The $6 billion-asset Republic First failed in September. 

The only other bank shuttered by regulators in 2024 was First National Bank of Lindsay in Lindsay, Oklahoma, which failed in October. 

Dime's "strong balance sheet and best-in-class capital strength provides an attractive foundation for talented commercial bankers," Geisel said in the press release. Dime reported shareholder equity totaling $1.4 billion at the end of 2024. "I look forward to working with Stu and the management team to leverage its positive momentum in creating a high performing, local champion." 

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Prior to joining Dime, Geisel spent six months at New York-based commercial real estate finance and investment company Greystone, where he served as executive managing director. 

After graduating from the University of Tennessee at Chattanooga in 1983, Geisel spent 10 years at the Drug Enforcement Agency, working in New York, Latin America and the Caribbean. Geisel worked at Cleveland-based KeyCorp from 1999 to 2007, rising to president of the Northeast region. From 2008 to 2013, Geisel was CEO of Sun Bancorp in Vineland, New Jersey.