NEW YORK, June 27 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- Sovereign Bank announced today that it has hired Vincent A. Ricciardi as Senior Market Executive overseeing Sovereign's retail banking activities in the Metro New York/New Jersey markets and districts.

Ricciardi, of Ridgewood, N.J., has more than 32 years of banking and retail experience. Prior to joining Sovereign, he was Senior Vice President and Region Executive for Premier Banking and Investments at Bank of America. In this position, he managed more than 400 employees in New York City, Long Island, Westchester, upstate New York, New Jersey and southwest Connecticut. Prior to that role, he was a Bank of America Market Executive in New Jersey, overseeing 11 districts and 152 branches.

"As a native of the Metro New York/New Jersey area, Vince truly understands the challenges and opportunities that we have in these valuable markets," noted Roy Lever, Sovereign Executive Vice President and Managing Director of Retail Banking. "I am confident that under Vince's leadership, the entire team in this division will achieve great success."

Ricciardi earned a master's degree from New York University and a bachelor's degree from St. Peter's College, Jersey City, N.J. He also pursued post graduate studies at New York University.

About Sovereign

Sovereign Bancorp, Inc., ("Sovereign") (NYSE: SOV), is the parent company of Sovereign Bank, a financial institution with principal markets in the Northeastern United States. Sovereign Bank has 750 community banking offices, over 2,300 ATMs and approximately 12,000 team members. Sovereign offers a broad array of financial services and products including retail banking, business and corporate banking, cash management, capital markets, wealth management and insurance. For more information on Sovereign Bank, visit http://www.sovereignbank.com or call 1-877-SOV-BANK.

Sovereign Bank is a registered trademark of Sovereign Bank or its affiliates or subsidiaries in the United States and other countries.

SOURCE Sovereign Bank