PeoplesBank Announces CEO Retirement, Leadership Changes

Tom Senecal recently announced he will retire at the end of 2025 after more than 35 years in the banking industry. PeoplesBank, which he joined in 1995, has grown from a $450 million institution to almost $7 billion at the bank’s mutual holding company.

“I just feel it’s the right time to allow a new generation to lead the bank in a direction that it needs to in order to compete with an ever-changing landscape,” Senecal said.

The board of directors of PeoplesBank and the board of trustees of PeoplesBancorp, MHC have unanimously approved a succession plan resulting from the retirement of Senecal at the end of 2025. He currently serves as chairman and CEO of PeoplesBank and PeoplesBancorp, MHC.

The CEO role will be filled by Todd Tallman, who will also remain CEO of Cornerstone Bank. Brian Canina will remain president of PeoplesBank and become president of PeoplesBancorp, MHC. Daniel Zona, currently president of Athol Savings Bank, will become president of Cornerstone Bank once the merger of Athol into Cornerstone is completed. Senecal will retain his role as the chairman of the board of directors of PeoplesBank and chairman of the board of trustees of PeoplesBancorp, MHC beginning in 2026.

“Tom and I define success the same way. It’s about the people,” Tallman said. “From that perspective, Tom has achieved immense success by growing an organization focused on the people who work for the bank and the customers and communities we serve. That focus will not change.”

Senecal led PeoplesBank through a period of unprecedented expansion, including two mergers, with a third — the merger of Athol into Cornerstone — pending. During his tenure, PeoplesBank opened six new banking centers in Massachusetts and Connecticut, launched a national digital bank, had record-setting corporate charitable contributions, and, most recently, secured the naming rights for PeoplesBank Arena in Hartford, Conn. The bank has been named among the Top Places to Work by the Boston Globe, a Best Local Bank in Massachusetts and Connecticut, and has repeatedly been named to the Boston Business Journal’s Top Corporate Charitable Contributors list.

“As a mutual bank, we are charged with supporting our customers and the communities they live in,” Canina said. “Tom helped us expand our mission in ways we never thought were possible. During his tenure, we have vastly improved our banking technology and core operating systems, and have brought the award-winning PeoplesBank experience and services to more and more customers.”