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Paul Kelly
Title: Senior Vice President and Commercial Regional Vice President, Berkshire Bank
Age: 52
Industry experience: 31 years
Networking is big in the banking industry – just ask Paul Kelly. His career didn’t start in the classroom or during an internship, but instead was launched straight out of Fenway Park. Kelly randomly sat next to a Shawmut Bank executive at a game more than three decades ago, and the two hit it off. The Shawmut executive asked Kelly if he would like to try his hand at asset-based lending, and Kelly has been enjoying the industry ever since. Kelly is now senior vice president and commercial regional vice president in Boston at Berkshire Bank. His experiences in banking include collateral field examining, relationship management, business development and specialty lending such as asset-based lending, automotive financing, equipment leasing and mortgage warehouse lending. Banker & Tradesman caught up with Kelly to discuss Berkshire’s plans in 2019 and banking and commercial lending issues to watch as well.
Q: What are the main goals for Berkshire Bank in 2019? What will you focus on?
A: At Berkshire Bank, we are continuously motivated by our entrepreneurial approach, as defined by our focus on quality, our aim for providing value and our encouragement of creativity. We believe in building relationships and providing the resources of a big bank with the personal attention of a small bank. We are driven by our distinctive culture throughout all of our lines of business. Our goals also include diversity, inclusion and belonging as part of our core values and external audiences.
Q: With the purchase of Savings Institute, Berkshire began to further fill in its regional footprint. Do you think the bank will eventually look to expand further in New England?
A: We currently have a definitive agreement in place to purchase Savings Institute. If the opportunity presents itself and it’s a good fit for both institutions, we may consider additional acquisitions.
Q: How does Berkshire plan to grow its presence in the Boston area?
A: The Boston and Worcester markets are an important part of the bank’s growth strategy. We recently moved our headquarters to Boston and hired experienced bankers and commercial lenders with deep roots in these communities. We have expanded our middle market, business banking, asset-based lending, real estate, private banking, wealth management, insurance and international teams with strong local talent. We are a full-service, relationship-based bank with products that have been designed to help customers with all their financial needs.
In addition, our executive management team has moved to Boston. We value our clients, prospects and centers of influence and want to make sure we are adding value to their businesses. Our experienced team members are advisors in the market and our mission is to help our customers grow.
Also, we believe it’s important to be good corporate citizens and make meaningful investments in the community. Berkshire Bank Foundation donates over $2 million annually to nonprofits in the bank’s footprint, while our employees devote over 40,000 hours of volunteer service. On June 5, 2018, we delivered our “Xtraordinary Day,” a day of service where all branch locations and operations centers closed their doors, allowing 92 percent of our employees to participate, providing 7,000 hours of service and impacting 70 nonprofit organizations. Our foundation won the Gold Halo Award for Top Employee Community Engagement Program in North America in 2018, and we most recently became the official bank of the Pan-Mass Challenge.
Q: What issues as a banker are you watching in 2019?
A: Given the recent volatility in the market and political climate, we are helping our clients understand the possible risks in 2019. The market is more uncertain, but the possibility of a recession will be unlikely this year and the risk of a trade war with China has reduced. The Fed may end rate hikes with possibly one more in 2019. Our clients will continue to be impacted by increased transportation costs, tight employment market and the increase in minimum wage putting more stress on profitability. We believe our customers need to be cognitive of the changes occurring in the market.
Q: Commercial real estate has been hot in recent years for many community banks in Boston. Is the landscape as favorable in coming years as it has been in the past? What sectors within commercial real estate do you like moving forward?
A: The commercial real estate market has performed well in recent years and we expect this trend to continue in 2019. Berkshire Bank enjoys financing real estate in many different sectors such as owner occupied, multifamily, commercial and office, construction lending and industrial.
Kelly’s Five Favorite National Parks:
- Yosemite National Park
- Grand Canyon National Park
- Yellowstone National Park
- Rocky Mountain National Park
- Acadia National Park
