Quarterlytics / Financial Services / Banks - Regional / Berkshire Hills Bancorp

Berkshire Hills Bancorp

bhlb · NASDAQ Financial Services
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Ticker bhlb
Exchange NASDAQ
Sector Financial Services
Industry Banks - Regional
Employees 1001-5000
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FY2019 Annual Report · Berkshire Hills Bancorp
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2 1 S T   C E N T U R Y   C O M M U N I T Y   B A N K I N G

2 0 1 9   S U M M A R Y   A N N U A L   R E P O R T

BUILDING THE FUTURE:  
21ST CENTURY COMMUNITY BANKING

Dear Shareholders, Customers and Employees:

Berkshire Bank is building the future of 21st century community banking to future-
proof the company and drive stakeholder value. A 21st century community bank 
provides robust digital platforms, programmatic initiatives that put its purpose 
and values into action and relevant products and services that build trust, deepen 
relationships and allow today’s consumer to bank with dignity. This approach can 
improve profitability, customer service, risk management, company culture, and  
our communities. 

As our report goes to press, the world faces the unprecedented outbreak of the 
COVID-19 pandemic. We are well-positioned to withstand these challenges and 
recognize the many ways this moment is testing individuals, businesses and our 
local economies. We’re taking appropriate precautions to prevent the spread of the 
virus, provide our customers with financial flexibility and support our communities 
in meaningful ways. Our culture and values that you will read about in this report will 
be our foundation as we navigate a year that will be different from 2019. 

Last year's results reflect our evolution and focus on long-term, sustainable, 
purpose- driven performance. We hit key operational targets, enhanced our culture 
and completed a strategic review all while achieving a total shareholder return that 
exceeded peers. Additional highlights include: 

•  26% Total Shareholder Return (TSR)

•  15% deposit growth; 13% increase in equity;  

4% increase in revenue 

•  SI Financial Group operations fully integrated 

•  Five new board directors enhancing diversity  

and expertise 

•  New Chief Experience Officer & Chief Human  

Resources Officer

•  New Regional President roles

•  Unveiled Be FIRST values & commitment 

•  Created Corporate Responsibility &  

Culture board committee 

PURPOSE-DRIVEN PERFORMANCE 
Our purpose is to financially empower our communities, reduce the wealth gap 
and help everyone realize life’s exciting moments. As one of the largest community 
banks headquartered in New England and the largest based in Boston, our 
franchise stretches across seven states, providing the scale to explore opportunities 
and meet evolving customer demographics while maintaining a steadfast focus on 
relationship- based customer service. 

1

2019 SUMMARY ANNUAL REPORT

Richard M. Marotta 
Chief Executive Officer

PURPOSE

To financially empower our 
communities, reduce the  
wealth gap and help everyone 
realize life's exciting moments.

CULTURE

A culture grounded in our 
Be FIRST values that fosters 
respect, ethical behavior, 
diversity and inclusion, 
creates an environment where 
all employees belong and can 
reach their full potential.

VISION

To succeed as a relationship-
driven financial institution by 
operating responsibly,  
investing in our people and 
communities and fostering a 
strong sense of belonging  
with sustainable returns.

FOOTPRINT

With corporate headquarters 
in Boston, we operate in 
seven northeastern states 
as a 21st century community 
bank with a reputation 
for responsiveness and 
engagement.

In 2019, we continued with our evolution and adopted a focus on 
long-term, sustainable, purpose-driven performance to more 
effectively position the company to meet the financial demands of 
consumers in the decades to come. We completed the seamless 
conversion and integration of SI Financial Group, including 
its 23 branches in Eastern Connecticut and Rhode Island. This 
contiguous market expansion allowed us to bring resources, local 
responsiveness and our distinctive culture to strengthen the 
capabilities of the SI Financial team while increasing both assets 
and deposits by approximately 14%.

We launched new strategic initiatives aimed at building a 21st century 
community bank to future-proof the company in coming decades. We 
reshaped our business focus and balance sheet structure to improve 
our financial condition, and adjust to margin pressures while investing 
in community oriented products and services. After year-end, we 
promoted eight existing leaders to the new position of Regional 
President in each of the company’s main geographic markets to 
lead regional collaboration and top priority initiatives. 

These collective actions allow us to pursue opportunities more 
closely aligned with our strategic vision and respond to consumers 
who seek value and relationship-based, socially responsible 
banking. We know there is no shortage of great business ideas 
within communities that have been historically overlooked. 
That’s why we’re expanding our efforts into urban markets with 
underbanked communities through Reevx Labs, Friends & Family 
Fund and other products, services and programs. More information 
on these initiatives and our comprehensive array of products and 
services can be found on our berkshirebank.com website. 

OUR BE FIRST CULTURE
Delivering relevant products, services and digital experiences so 
that everyone can bank with dignity is only part of what it takes to 
build a successful 21st century community bank. A business is only 
as strong as its foundation, and company culture is the beating 
heart that guides our collective conscious. A company with a  

LONG-TERM PER-SHARE 
PERFORMANCE 21% GROWTH

Dividends

$0.76

Book Value

$28.64

$0.92

$34.65

SELECT FINANCIAL 
INFORMATION

Balance Sheet 
($ millions – period end)

FY19

FY18

Total Assets

Total Securities

Total Loans

Goodwill and Intangibles

Deposits

Borrowings

Shareholders' Equity

$13,216

$12,212

1,770

9,502

599

10,336

828

1,759

1,919

9,043

552

8,982

1,518

1,553

Operating Results 
($ millions)

FY19

FY18

Net Interest Income

$365

$356

Non-Interest Income

Total Net Revenue

Provision for Loan Losses

Non-Interest Expense

Net Income

84

449

35

290

97

74

430

25

267

106

Per Common  
Share Data ($)

FY19

FY18

Earnings, Diluted

$1.97

$2.29

Earnings, Adjusted*

Dividends

Book Value

Tangible Book Value*

2.40

0.92

34.65

22.56

2.79

0.88

33.30

21.15

2015

2016

2017

2018

2019

Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc.—BHLB  |  berkshirebank.com 

2

* Note: Earnings, Adjusted and Tangible Book Value 
are non-GAAP financial measures; see Form 10-K for 
discussion and further detail.

BostonPrincetonHartfordWillimanticWorcesterSpringfieldPittsfieldManchesterSyracuseAlbany2019 AWARDS

•  Forbes Best Banks in 

America 

•  U.S. Chamber of 

Commerce Foundation 
Citizens Award 
Top Corporate Steward- Small-
Middle Market Business

•  North American 

Employee Engagement 
Award Social Responsibility 

•  New England 

Community Bank Heroes  
Gold 

•  Boston Business 

Journal Top Charitable 
Contributors List 
7th straight year

•  Communitas Award- 

Leadership in Corporate 
Social Responsibility  
For the Be FIRST Commitment 

•  Best of the Berkshires  

Best Bank (12th straight year!), 
Insurance Agent, Mortgage 
Lender, Wealth Management

•  Nationally Ranked  

SBA Lender

•  Top Large SBA 

Commercial Lender in 
Upstate New York 

•  Export Lender of the Year 
44 Business Capital, a Division 
of Berkshire Bank

•  Bronze Lender NJ

For more information, see our 
CORPORATE 
RESPONSIBILITY REPORT:
berkshirebank.com/csr

best-in-class workplace culture and one that embraces diversity will always deliver 
higher returns for shareholders, mitigate risk and provide employees with an 
environment where everyone belongs. 

In early 2019, we rolled out our Be FIRST values of Belonging, Focusing, Inclusion, 
Respect, Service and Teamwork. These values build on our history and integrate 
the beliefs of the companies and employees who now comprise Berkshire Bank. 
They more accurately reflect who we are today and who we desire to be in the future 
to ensure we fulfill our corporate purpose. With our values serving the lens through 
which we act, we are delivering a culture that mirrors our evolution over the last 
decade. We established the Corporate Responsibility & Culture Committee of our 
Board of Directors, created a Diversity & Inclusion Employee Committee to focus 
on implementing our diversity and inclusion strategy and launched seven new 
Employee Resource Groups.

Making sure our employees are treated equitably, fairly and have the resources 
they need to thrive is critical to future-proofing the company. We completed 
a comprehensive assessment of employee engagement including a survey to 
evaluate our current performance and held in-person and virtual employee 
town halls. In recognition of our collective actions, Berkshire Bank was included 
in the Bloomberg Gender Equality Index, which tracks companies committed to 
supporting gender equality, for the first time, building on our $15 minimum wage 
and the company-wide implementation of the Massachusetts Equal Pay Act. These 
accomplishments ensure that we deliver a workplace culture that all our employees 
can be proud of and that improves our financial performance. 

THE BE FIRST COMMITMENT 
Banks play a pivotal role in society, and with changes in technology, the regulatory 
environment, consumer preferences, expectations, and our neighborhoods, we 
must reimagine the role we play in the community. The Be FIRST Commitment 
is our comprehensive plan to enhance our social performance, improve our 
culture, future-proof the company and transform our communities by building 
a responsible workforce, fostering sustainable communities and financing the 
future. In 2019, we provided $4.7MM in contributions to help close the wealth 
gap so that all citizens, regardless of ethnicity, have equal opportunity for upward 
economic mobility, improving the business climate and helping our communities 
thrive. The XTEAM®, our award winning employee volunteer program, achieved 
100% employee participation for the fourth straight year, and our financial wellness 
programming helped to impact 32,231 individuals. As a result of the commitment 
of our employees, company and each of you, we were recognized with the 
North American Employee Engagement Award for Social Responsibility, the US 
Chamber of Commerce Foundation Top Corporate Steward Citizen Award and the 
Communitas Award for Leadership in Corporate Social Responsibility. 

Our 2019 Corporate Responsibility Report, Leading The Way Forward: Purpose 
Driven Performance, highlights our progress on The Be FIRST Commitment and our 
environmental, social and governance performance. It is available on our Investor 
Relations and Bank website at berkshirebank.com/csr.

3

2019 SUMMARY ANNUAL REPORT

LEADING THE  WAY FORWARDPURPOSE-DRIVEN PERFORMANCE2019 CORPORATE  RESPONSIBILITY REPORTA CULTURE OF BELONGING

BELONGING
fosters an environment where all 
relationships matter

FOCUSING
on a positive attitude and 
everything else will follow

INCLUSION
invites openness and builds 
belonging

RESPECT
cultivates an unyielding 
commitment to integrity  
and responsibility

SERVICE
quality should be delivered 
regardless of income or wealth

TEAMWORK
empowers collaboration and 
cooperation

LONG-TERM STAKEHOLDER FOCUS
We believe that purpose and profit are inextricably linked, and delivering positive 
financial and social returns for all our stakeholders not only leads to long-term, 
sustainable performance, but is central to improving profitability, mitigating 
risk and creating a best-in-class workplace culture. We increased our dividend 
on common shares by 5% in January 2019 and an additional 4% increase was 
announced in January 2020. We continue to broaden the expertise, diversity and 
geographic representation of our board, adding five new directors and announced 
that J. Williar (“Bill”) Dunlaevy was elected to replace William Ryan as Board Chair. 

We’re proud of the steps we’ve taken together to evolve the company and invest 
in the vitality of future generations. We’ll continue to focus on strengthening our 
franchise and building a 21st century community bank that delivers purpose-driven 
performance. I’m grateful to our board and our leadership team for their dedication 
to our vision and enthusiastic about the opportunities ahead. We thank all our 
employees, customers, communities and shareholders for their continuing support 
and belief in a values-driven approach to banking. 

Sincerely,

Richard M. Marotta 
Chief Executive Officer

Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc.—BHLB  |  berkshirebank.com 

4

FUTURE-
PROOFING 
BUSINESS

Reevx Labs is part of our 
continued commitment to 
bettering the community and 
revolutionizing the banking 
experience. Each Reevx Lab 
features a series of free co-
working spaces for the community 
with the goal of creating places 
where entrepreneurs and 
nonprofits can connect with their 
peers and access the bank’s 
MyBankers for support of their 
financial needs, as they pursue 
their missions. Berkshire Bank is 
committed to keeping its promise 
to communities by building 
relationships and understanding 
their needs.

The Friends & Family Fund, 
powered by The Runway Project, 
is designed to help entrepreneurs 
of color access seed capital 
and spur economic growth in 
underserved communities using 
a relationship-based community 
underwriting process that 
eliminates historical barriers. 
Trusted advisors provide 
holistic business support and 
ongoing financial coaching to 
entrepreneurs as they build their 
companies to ensure success.

CORPORATE PROFILE

$13.2 Billion
in Assets

•  Retail banking, commercial banking, 
insurance and wealth management

•  130 branches located across New 

England, New York, New Jersey and 
Pennsylvania

•  Wealth assets under management of 

$1.5 billion

INVESTMENT 
CONSIDERATIONS

•  Boston headquartered regional 
community bank with a diverse 
northeast footprint

•  Building a 21st century community 

bank, positioning for future decades 
with values based market offerings, 
personalized relationship management 
and digital channels

•  Targeting higher quality, sustainable 
earnings with a focus on purpose- 
driven performance for all stakeholders

•  Investments in enterprise management 
systems provide scale and flexibility

LEADING THE WAY 
FORWARD: PURPOSE- 
DRIVEN PERFORMANCE

THE BE FIRST COMMITMENT

69%

$4.7MM

$628MM

SMALL BUSINESS LOANS 
OUTSTANDING

WOMEN IN 
MANAGEMENT

32,000

HELPED WITH  
FINANCIAL EDUCATION 
PROGRAMMING 

$284MM

COMMUNITY DEVELOPMENT  
LOANS OUTSTANDING

We celebrate our diverse communities and foster a sense of 
belonging for our customers as individuals. We believe in 
racial, social and gender equity and strive to connect with our 
communities to bank everyone with dignity.

Personal attention to customers' finances  
is the hallmark of our service in-person, 
remotely or online.

5

2019 SUMMARY ANNUAL REPORT

All Inclusive Here
.  

Cultures   Religions   Genders   LGBTQIA+

Colors   Ages   Disabilities   Veterans 

.  

.  

.  

.  

.  

LEADERSHIP TEAM

Richard M. Marotta 
Chief Executive Officer

Sean A. Gray 
President and Chief Operating Officer

James M. Moses 
SEVP, Chief Financial Officer

George F. Bacigalupo 
SEVP, Commercial Banking

Tami M. Gunsch  
SEVP & Director of  
Relationship Banking

BOARD OF DIRECTORS

J. Williar Dunlaevy 
Chairman of the Board,  
Former Chairman & CEO  
of Legacy Bancorp, Inc.  
& Legacy Banks

Baye Adofo-Wilson, Esq.  
CEO BAW Development, LLC

Rheo A. Brouillard 
Former President and Chief Executive 
Officer of SI Financial Group, Inc  
& Savings Institute Bank & Trust

David M. Brunelle 
Co-Founder and Managing Director 
of North Pointe Wealth Management

Robert M. Curley 
Berkshire Bank New York Chairman,  
Former Chairman & President for Citizens 
Bank in New York

John B. Davies 
Former Executive Vice President  
of Massachusetts Mutual Life  
Insurance Company

William H. Hughes III 
Founder and President of  
Open4 Learning

Malia Lazu 
EVP, Chief Experience & Culture Officer 
Regional President, Eastern 
Massachusetts

Gregory D. Lindenmuth 
SEVP, Chief Risk Officer

Georgia Melas 
EVP, Chief Credit Officer

Wm. Gordon Prescott 
EVP, General Counsel and 
Corporate Secretary

Deborah A. Stephenson 
SEVP, Compliance and Regulatory

Cornelius D. Mahoney 
Former Chairman, President & 
CEO of Woronoco Bancorp, Inc. & 
Woronoco Savings Bank

Richard M. Marotta 
Chief Executive Officer  
of Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc.

Pamela A. Massad, Esq. 
Of Counsel with Fletcher Tilton PC

Dr. Sylvia Maxfield  
Dean, Providence College School  
of Business

Laurie Norton Moffatt 
Director & CEO of the  
Norman Rockwell Museum

William J. Ryan 
Former Chairman & CEO  
of TD Banknorth 

Jonathan I. Shulman 
Former EVP & Treasurer Keycorp

D. Jeffrey Templeton 
Owner & President of  
The Mosher Company, Inc.

Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc.—BHLB  |  berkshirebank.com 

6

INCLUSION & 
SERVICE FOR ALL

ENSURING GENDER 
EQUALITY

For the first time, Berkshire 
Bank was listed in the 
Bloomberg Gender Equality 
Index, ranking the company 
as one of the top workplaces 
globally for gender equality.

BANKING FOR ALL:  
IN PRACTICE, NOT 
JUST IN THEORY

Nearly 3 in 10 U.S. adults 
have no emergency 
savings. We at Berkshire 
Bank believe that everyone 
deserves financial stability. 
Adequate financial literacy 
is not the only solution, but 
it’s an integral step towards 
reaching financial stability 
and security.

We partnered with The 
Dimock Center on a four 
week Financial Literacy 
Program for its residents to 
learn about credit, budgeting, 
homeownership, banking, 
and more.

 
CORPORATE OFFICES
Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc.
60 State Street
Boston, MA 02109
800.773.5601
berkshirebank.com

STOCK LISTING
Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc., is listed  
on the New York Stock Exchange  
under the symbol “BHLB.”

INVESTOR INFORMATION
Investor Relations
Attn: David Gonci
Berkshire Hills Bancorp, Inc.
800.773.5601
investorrelations@berkshirebank.com

TRANSFER AGENT AND REGISTRAR
Shareholders who wish to change the name, address, or 
ownership of stock, report lost stock certificates, inquire 
about the Dividend Reinvestment Plan or consolidate 
stock accounts should contact:

Broadridge Corporate Issuer Solutions, Inc.
P.O. Box 1342
Brentwood, NY 11717
844.458.9357
shareholder@broadridge.com
shareholder.broadridge.com/bhlb

This  document  contains  forward-looking  statements  (within  the  meaning  of  the  Private 
Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995). There are several factors that could cause actual 
results to differ significantly from expectations described in the forward-looking statements. 
For a discussion of such factors, please see Berkshire's most recently filed reports on Forms 
10-K and 10-Q, which are available on the SEC's website at www.sec.gov. Berkshire does not 
undertake any obligation to update forward-looking statements. 

Banking  products  are  provided  by  Berkshire  Bank:  Member  FDIC;  Equal 
Housing Lender. Berkshire Bank is a Massachusetts chartered bank.

Insurance  and  investment  products  as  well  as  investment  securities 
and  obligations  of  Berkshire  Hills  Bancorp,  Inc.  are  NOT  FDIC-INSURED,  are  NOT  A  BANK 
DEPOSIT, “NOT GUARANTEED BY THE BANK,” “NOT INSURED BY ANY FEDERAL GOVERNMENT 
AGENCY” and MAY LOSE VALUE.