Peyton Patterson

A highly respected leader in community banking, Peyton Patterson has dramatically expanded the scope and reach of several prominent institutions. As chairman, president, and CEO of NewAlliance Bancshares, she facilitated six acquisitions and completed a $1.4 billion initial public offering, the largest transaction of its kind in US history. Peyton Patterson led the bank through its $1.5 billion sale in 2011 and went on to further success as president and CEO of Bankwell Financial Group, which she expanded with a more than threefold increase in net income and the acquisition of two banking institutions.

Peyton Patterson has appeared as a guest expert on CNBC and has written for American Banker magazine, which in 2013 named her one of its 25 Women to Watch. She has also earned the magazine's Community Banker of the Year award as well as inclusion in US Banker Magazine's 25 Most Powerful Women in Banking. She now applies her expertise as head of an independent consulting group.

Actively involved in her community, Peyton Patterson stands out as former chair of the Connecticut Council for Education Reform and a past trustee of Yale-New Haven Hospital. She has further leveraged her financial expertise to strengthen a number of nonprofit organizations, which she has also served as an active member.