Peapack Private Appoints Paul Kotronis as Senior Managing Director, Commercial Real Estate

Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corporation has appointed Paul Kotronis as Senior Managing Director of Commercial Real Estate for its Peapack Private Bank & Trust division. In this new role, Kotronis is tasked with expanding the bank’s lending platform and driving relationship-based deposit growth within the New York and New Jersey markets. This strategic hire underscores the institution's commitment to strengthening its presence in the regional multifamily and commercial finance sectors during a period of targeted portfolio expansion.

Paul Kotronis joins Peapack Private with over 20 years of experience in commercial real estate finance, specializing in building large-scale lending platforms and managing multi-billion-dollar portfolios. His primary objectives include supporting the bank’s existing CRE lending infrastructure and leveraging deep market relationships to enhance the firm's footprint in the competitive New York and New Jersey corridors. Joseph Fingerman, Senior Managing Director and President of Commercial Real Estate at Peapack Private, noted that Kotronis’s background in multifamily finance will be instrumental in serving clients and maintaining disciplined risk management.

Before this appointment, Kotronis served as Group Director and Senior Vice President at Signature Bank, where he was responsible for a $5 billion commercial real estate portfolio. During his tenure there, he originated more than $4 billion in loans and cultivated significant relationships with prominent real estate sponsors in the tri-state area. His career also includes a pivotal role at A&E Real Estate Finance, where he helped launch a commercial real estate debt fund platform and established its underwriting standards and operational infrastructure.

The addition of Kotronis comes as Peapack-Gladstone Financial Corporation reports total assets of $7.7 billion and assets under management or administration of $13.1 billion as of March 31, 2026. By integrating Kotronis’s expertise from previous leadership roles at Santander Bank and New York Commercial Bank, Peapack Private aims to balance aggressive business growth with regulatory compliance. This move signals a continued focus on high-quality, relationship-driven commercial banking solutions for real estate investors and privately held businesses in the Northeast.