Bank of Greene County
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Banking |
| Founded | January 22, 1889 in Catskill, New York, United States |
| Headquarters | Catskill , United States |
Area served | Upstate New York (Greene, Columbia, Albany, Ulster, Rensselaer counties) |
Key people | Donald E. Gibson (President and CEO since 2007) |
| Products | Savings bank services |
| Website | www |
Bank of Greene County is a federally chartered savings bank based in Catskill, New York. It operates branches serving several counties in Upstate New York, including Greene, Columbia, Albany, Ulster, and Rensselaer.
Since 2007, Donald E. Gibson has held the positions of President and CEO.
History
The institution was established on January 22, 1889, originally named the Building & Loan Association of Catskill. Its first leader was Thomas E. Ferrier, a local entrepreneur and Catskill Town Supervisor. In 1911, the organization transitioned to the Catskill Savings & Loan Association (CS&LA), broadening its services to include savings deposits.
By 1930, CS&LA acquired its initial property at 389 Main Street in Catskill for $15,000. The bank’s assets grew to $1 million by 1940. In 1963, it moved operations to 425 Main Street and introduced a drive-up window. The institution converted to a state-chartered savings bank in 1974 under the name Greene County Savings Bank and inaugurated its first branch in Coxsackie.
J. Bruce Whittaker became president in 1987. The bank underwent rebranding in 1998 as The Bank of Greene County and went public through its holding company, Greene County Bancorp, Inc. That year also saw the creation of a Charitable Foundation that has contributed $2.9 million to local nonprofits. The following year, its common stock started trading on NASDAQ under the symbol GCBC. Additionally, the headquarters relocated to a restored historic Art Deco building at 302 Main Street.
Further growth included opening new branches across Upstate New York towns such as Tannersville, Hudson, Chatham, Kingston, and Albany. Existing locations in Coxsackie and Cairo were expanded and relocated. Centralized operations moved to 288 Main Street in Catskill in 2006.
Whittaker retired in 2007, with Donald Gibson succeeding him after joining the bank in 1987 and advancing to senior vice president of commercial and retail banking.
In 2013, the bank launched a lending center at 341 Main Street in Catskill—a former bank building notable for its architecture and listed on the Greene County Historical Register in 2014. The first branch in Ulster County opened in Kingston early in 2015; a second Ulster location followed in Woodstock in 2018.
On February 17, 2016, Greene County Bancorp announced a two-for-one stock split that doubled shares outstanding while halving the stock price proportionately. That year marked GCBC’s initial inclusion in the FTSE Russell 3000 Index; it was added to the Russell 2000 Index in 2022.
During the COVID-19 pandemic, the bank facilitated Paycheck Protection Program loans under the CARES Act to support businesses throughout Upstate New York. In recognition of this community assistance and PPP efforts, Senator Michelle Hinchey honored the bank with the New York State Empire Award in 2021.
The bank expanded its footprint in Albany County by opening a third branch on Wolf Road in Colonie in 2020 and relocated its Customer Service Center to a dedicated facility in late 2021. In 2023, it established a branch in East Greenbush—the first within Rensselaer County—and introduced a Capital Region Banking Center outside Catskill in 2024.
Also during 2023, Bank of Greene County inaugurated a wealth management center at 345 Main Street in Catskill (the former Tanners Bank Building) and was recognized on the New York State Historic Business Preservation Registry.
Celebrating its 135th anniversary and a quarter-century on NASDAQ in 2024, the bank marked the occasion by ringing the closing bell at Times Square—a ceremonial tradition also observed during its 120th and 125th anniversaries.