Mr. Peter G. Fitzgerald has served as the Chairman of the Company’s Board since incorporating the Company in May 2006. He has also served as the Chairman of the Bank’s Board since the Bank commenced operations in August 2007. Mr. Fitzgerald has been continuously active in his roles as Chairman since assuming these positions, and his service constitutes his principal occupation.
Mr. Fitzgerald’s professional background is in banking, law, and public service. He began his legal career as an associate at Isham, Lincoln & Beale in Chicago and later practiced banking law at Riordan, Larson, Bruckert & Moore. From January 1993 to October 1, 1994, he served as General Counsel for Suburban Bancorp, Inc., overseeing legal affairs for thirteen banks and various non-bank subsidiaries. On October 1, 1994, Suburban Bancorp, Inc. merged into Bank of Montreal (BMO) and became Harris Bankmont, Inc. Following the merger, Mr. Fitzgerald continued to serve in a legal capacity at Harris Bankmont, Inc. until the end of 1996, when he resigned to run for the U.S. Senate. Between 1988 and 1998, he held board positions at three nationally chartered commercial banks and one state-chartered commercial bank.
In 1998, Mr. Fitzgerald was elected to the United States Senate, where he served as a Senator representing Illinois from 1999 to 2005. Prior to his tenure in the U.S. Senate, he was elected to the Illinois State Senate, serving from 1993 to 1998.
Mr. Fitzgerald completed his secondary education at Portsmouth Abbey School. He earned his A.B. degree, cum laude, with highest distinction in Latin and Greek, from Dartmouth College, and was a co-recipient of the Perkins Literature Prize. As a Rotary scholar, he spent one year studying Modern Greek at the Aristotelian University of Thessaloniki in Greece. Mr. Fitzgerald earned his J.D. degree from the University of Michigan School of Law.
Mr. Fitzgerald’s experience in banking, law, and public service, as well as his commitment to the Company and the Bank since their establishment, provide him with the qualifications, attributes, and skills necessary to serve as Chairman of the Board.
