On August 24, 2023, Marcia Z. Hefter informed the Board of Directors of Dime Community Bancshares, Inc., that she is retiring from the Board of Directors of the Company, for personal reasons, effective September 28, 2023. There were no disagreements between Director Hefter and the Company or the Bank. Director Hefter originally joined the Board of Directors of Bridgehampton National Bank, a predecessor of the Bank, in 1989.
On September 28, 2023, Judith H. Germano is expected to be appointed to the Board of Directors of the Company to fill the position vacated by the retirement of Marcia Z. Hefter. Ms. Germano will serve for a term that will expire at the annual meeting of the shareholders of the Company in 2024. Ms. Germano will serve on the Credit Risk, Enterprise Risk, and Strategic Planning Committees of the Board of Directors. Ms. Germano, an attorney, is founder and lead counsel of Germano Law LLC, Montclair, New Jersey, a boutique law firm she founded in 2013. Ms. Germano primarily advises and represents public and privately held companies on cybersecurity, privacy, white-collar criminal, and regulatory compliance matters. She is a Distinguished Fellow at New York University?s (NYU) Center for Cybersecurity, an Adjunct Professor of Law at NYU School of Law, and an Adjunct Professor at NYU Stern School of Business. Ms. Germano previously served with the U.S. Attorney?s Office, District of New Jersey, for eleven years, including as Chief of the Economic Crimes Unit. Ms. Germano also worked with the global law firm of Shearman & Sterling LLP and served as a federal law clerk to judges on the U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit, and the U.S. District Court, District of Connecticut.