With 700-plus East Coast branches, M&T Bank generates its share of paperwork. Checks and deposits are currently handled daily in Baltimore and Buffalo, but that is about to change, with ramifications for the regional banking picture.
M&T announced March 30 it has initiated a $10 million expansion. The two largest aspects are a new branch in Newburgh and the creation of a regional operations center that will process checks and other materials in Fishkill.
The processing facility will be built at the bank”™s regional headquarters on Jackson Street. It is slated to open late in the second quarter or early 3Q.
“We see strong potential for business growth in the Hudson Valley as the U.S. economy rebounds,” Regional President Michael T. Keegan said. “This region is an ideal location for M&T to invest in expanding our services and growing our market share.”
Chet Bridger, vice president for corporate communications, said, “Right now all the checks and deposit paperwork from M&T”™s 730 U.S. branches have to go to Buffalo or Baltimore at the end of the day. We will now do some of that work in Fishkill, as a third center. Just a few new jobs to start, but adding that capacity positions us to grow there. We also plan to do a lot more marketing/advertising in the valley as part of our business strategy.”
Bridger also said, “We also plan to do a lot more marketing/advertising in the valley as part of our business strategy.”
M&T reports the new branch on Route 9W in Newburgh will be built to Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards (LEED) established by the U.S. Green Building Council. The branch will operate with energy-efficient lighting, heating, cooling and water systems. The project will begin this year with the demolition of M&T”™s existing 9W branch, the company said in a statement.
Besides the new branch in Newburgh, M&T plans what it terms “major renovations” to branches in Hopewell Junction and Wappingers Falls. Improvements are in gear at 28 additional branches in Dutchess, Ulster, Sullivan, Orange and Putnam counties. The majority of the work has gone to local contractors, according to M&T.
“The Fishkill operations center will process checks and deposits from M&T”™s 80 branches running from Albany through Long Island,” Keegan said. “This is a major change for us, because we”™ve been sending all that work to a center in either Buffalo or Baltimore. This will improve our local service, because our customers will be able to make deposits until as late as 6 p.m. and have them posted to their accounts as same-day deposits.”
M&T also reports it will be upgrading its ATMs to offer “enhanced deposit-taking functions.”
“Our plan is focused on making our services more convenient for customers to deliver a superior customer experience,” said Rob Brown, senior vice president and retail banking manager for M&T in the Hudson Valley.
M&T was founded in 1856 and today lists more than $68 billion in assets. Besides the East Coast, it also operates in Ontario, Canada.
We can really use a branch in Mahopac,
Thanks
Bill