Massachusetts-Based River Run Bancorp Welcomes Sujata Yadav as President

BOSTON, Mass. — Massachusetts-based River Run Bancorp, MHC has appointed banking executive Sujata Yadav as President, launching a planned leadership transition as the mutual banking organization continues its strategic growth and development.

Following a national search, River Run’s Board of Directors elected Yadav to the position. She will work with Chief Executive Officer Lloyd L. Hamm Jr., the Board and the Executive Leadership Team during the transition and is scheduled to succeed Hamm as CEO effective July 1, 2027.

Hamm will then become Executive Chairman for a two-year period, working with Yadav, River Run’s boards and leadership team to support continuity, strategic initiatives, potential mutual bank merger opportunities and the organization’s continued growth. He will also remain Co-Chairman of the River Run Board alongside Scott Cote, Chairman of Pentucket Bank.

“We are thrilled to welcome Sujata to River Run,” Hamm said. “She brings tremendous leadership experience, strategic vision, energy and a genuine passion for mutual community banking. Her collaborative leadership style, commitment to people and belief in the importance of strong relationships make her an exceptional fit for River Run and the culture we have worked so hard to create.”

Yadav joins River Run after a career spanning consumer lending, marketing, product development, analytics, innovation and strategic growth.

She joined Eastern Bank in 2017 as Senior Vice President and Consumer Lending Director. During her tenure, she led the introduction of the bank’s first fully integrated online platforms for unsecured lending and home equity. She later took on responsibility for Product Marketing and Analytics.

In 2021, Yadav became Executive Vice President and Chief Marketing Officer, where she modernized Eastern’s brand and marketing strategy, established a formal B2B marketing discipline and helped guide marketing and communications integration through two major mergers.

Following Eastern’s merger with Cambridge Trust in July 2024, Yadav became the company’s first Chief Product Officer. She led a centralized product team focused on product strategy and development while continuing to advance product marketing and data analytics to support innovation, revenue growth and alignment with changing customer needs.

Before joining Eastern, Yadav spent 14 years with Citibank N.A., holding national and international leadership positions across its consumer banking operations. Her work included integrated omnichannel marketing, product development and portfolio optimization.

“Sujata brings an extraordinary combination of strategic vision, innovation, leadership and execution,” Hamm said. “Throughout our extensive selection process, she distinguished herself not only through the breadth and depth of her executive accomplishments, but also through her passion for mutual community banking, her strategic mindset, her collaborative leadership style and her vision for River Run’s future.”

Yadav said she was drawn to River Run’s community banking model and its local relationships.

“I am thrilled to join River Run and to become part of an organization with such deep roots in the communities we serve,” Yadav said. “I am very much looking forward to getting to know our people, our communities and our three community banks, and to experiencing firsthand the commitment and relationships that make River Run so special.”

She added that she looks forward to building on River Run’s existing foundation while maintaining its commitment to customers, communities and employees.

Yadav holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Rajasthan in Jaipur, India, and an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Lucknow.

She serves on the Board of Trustees of Winchester Hospital and the Board of Directors of Junior Achievement of Greater Boston. She previously served on the boards of United Way of Massachusetts Bay and Merrimack Valley and The Ad Club. She lives in Lynnfield with her husband and two sons.

As part of the transition, Yadav will visit River Run offices and branches across the organization in the coming weeks to meet employees and learn more about the customers and communities served by its affiliated banks.

River Run’s Community Banking Model

Established in 2023, River Run Bancorp, MHC has approximately $3.6 billion in collective assets and oversees three affiliated community banks: Newburyport Bank, Pentucket Bank and Rollstone Bank & Trust.

Through River Run Bancorp and River Run Services LLC, the organization provides strategic leadership, shared resources and enterprise capabilities while allowing its affiliated banks to retain their independent brands, local leadership and community focus.

River Run says its model is designed to combine the resources and capabilities of a larger banking organization with the local decision-making and personal relationships traditionally associated with mutual community banking.

The organization’s leadership transition comes as River Run seeks to build on the combination of its three community banks while preserving what it describes as the core values of mutual banking and its long-term commitment to the communities it serves.