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EVERYTHING STARTS WITH YOU.SM
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“The bank has been through an exciting period filled with a number of historic milestones.” —John A. Klein, Chairman and CEO People’s United Financial, Inc.
Dear Shareholder Since we held our annual meeting of shareholders in April 2006, the bank has been through an exciting period filled with a number of historic milestones. We value greatly your continued support of your board of directors and management team during this period of significant change for the bank. Indeed, our new marketing tagline — found on the cover of this booklet — encapsulates the importance of you, our shareholders: Everything starts with you. $3.44 BILLION EQUITY OFFERING So much of what we have achieved would not have been possible without your vote of confidence and support. In May 2006, we announced our plans to change from a state to a federal charter under the Office of Thrift Supervision (OTS). The new charter, which you approved in August 2006, facilitates our expansion plans by allowing us to open new branches in other states much more easily than we could have under our previous state charter. We announced plans for a second-step conversion and stock offering in September 2006. This transaction led us to become a fully publicly owned stock holding company, People’s United Financial, Inc. The stock offering raised $3.44 billion in a transaction that closed on April 16, 2007 and was the second-largest bank equity offering ever.
We used $60 million of proceeds from the stock offering to establish the People’s United Community Foundation, which will continue to support the communities where we work and live. We changed the name of our principal subsidiary to People’s United Bank (from People’s Bank) on June 6 of this year. We did this because there are more than 150 banks in the country with the word “People’s” in their name. People’s United Bank is a distinctive name that reflects what we have always been: one team, united in its commitment to provide our customers with unparalleled ease and convenience, and a consistently superior customer experience. We’ve maintained the brand equity we’ve built in the “People’s” name and enhanced our logo to indicate our contemporary, forward-looking stance. CHITTENDEN ACQUISITION Throughout the second-step transaction — in the prospectus, during the investor presentations and at our depositor and shareholder meetings — we stated that our primary intention for the use of proceeds was to be an acquisition of a commerciallyoriented bank located in contiguous or near-contiguous markets with a balance sheet, pricing and credit discipline, and culture similar to our own. 1
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PROMISES KEPT We kept our promise with the announcement on June 27 of our agreement to acquire the Chittenden Corporation family of banks. Chittenden’s banks, which are located in many of the most attractive and fastest-growing New England markets, stretch from Maine through New Hampshire and Vermont to Massachusetts. We have made the strategic decision to maintain the individual brands of the Chittenden family of banks: Chittenden Bank (headquartered in Burlington, VT); Ocean Bank (Portsmouth, NH); Maine Bank & Trust Co. (Portland, ME); Merrill Merchants Bank (Bangor, ME); Flagship Bank & Trust Co. (Worcester, MA); and the Bank of Western Massachusetts (Springfield, MA). We chose to maintain the multi-bank operating model and brands because we believe it is a uniquely New England approach that works in this land of steady habits and enduring traditions. GOING FORWARD We are now focused on two clear objectives. First, all of us at People’s United are committed to continuing to strengthen and grow our businesses and to providing our shareholders a strong return on their investment. Second, your management team is working conscientiously to ensure an effective integration between People’s United and Chittenden when the transaction closes, which is expected to be in the first quarter of 2008. We know that there are no greater goals than these two for the bank right now.
We firmly believe that, by persevering in growing our bank organically and through well-considered acquisitions, we will position People’s United to continue delivering the shareholder value that you have come to expect from this management team regardless of short-term movements in the equity markets. We have built a reputation for value creation and intend to continue to take the steps necessary to enhance shareholder value. In that vein, we announced our application for a waiver from the OTS to allow us to begin a stock buyback program of up to five percent of our then-outstanding shares earlier than the rules typically permit following a second-step conversion. Should we receive that permission, we will begin the repurchase program as soon as possible following the close of the Chittenden transaction. Again, I want to assure you that all of us at People’s United are deeply committed to continuing to grow our business effectively and to deliver strong performance in support of value creation for you, our investors. Thank you again for your continued support. Sincerely,
John A. Klein, Chairman and CEO People’s United Financial, Inc.
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Meeting Customer Needs In 1977, interior designer Lillian August began decorating the homes of Fairfield County residents. Thirty years later, she has licensed her name and now furnishes homes nationwide with eclectic lines of furniture, textiles and accessories sold through Drexel-Heritage showrooms. With six Lillian August stores in Connecticut and one in Westchester County, New York, the company looks to People’s United Bank for its business borrowing needs. “We appreciate the local decision-making authority of People’s United commercial lenders,” said John Weiss, Lillian’s son and chief operating officer of the company. “When we dealt with larger banks, all decisions were made out-of-state. With People’s United, we have a strong bank, large enough to meet our credit needs yet local so that we know our banker is never far from us.” John’s brother Dan, who is president of the company, noted, “Quick credit decisions can sometimes make the difference between an opportunity seized and an opportunity lost. I believe banks that can meet a customer’s need for a quick decision will always be successful.” John Weiss, seated, and his brother Dan Weiss, far right, visit with Frank Cory, vice president and senior commercial lending officer, People’s United Bank, at the Lillian August flagship store in Norwalk, Connecticut.
Expanding Into New York State Deborah Ciresi, a Scarsdale attorney, was one of the first customers in the new People’s United Bank office in that Westchester County town. The branch, the bank’s first outside Connecticut, is one of up to 15 planned for Westchester by the end of 2009. People’s United also continues to expand throughout Connecticut with new traditional branches opened in Westport and Trumbull, a new drive-up facility in Shelton and new Stop & Shop branches in Stamford, West Haven, Bridgeport, Montville and North Canaan since April 2006. “I was dissatisfied with my old, larger bank for so many reasons,” Ciresi said when opening her account. “Walking into your branch, I immediately felt like a valued customer, and that’s what makes the difference in a long-term relationship.” Ciresi found that People’s United has the breadth of services offered by much larger banks, but the customer service of a hometown bank. Since opening her first account, Ciresi has expanded her relationship and enjoys the convenience of the bank’s online banking system, 24-hour customer service and Sunday hours. “You just don’t find banks like People’s United anymore. Everything really does start with the customer here.” Deborah Ciresi discusses her new People’s United checking account in the bank’s new Scarsdale branch with Stephen Shealy, vice president and Westchester County market manager.
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New Name. Same Commitment. Having previously announced plans for expansion in contiguous and near-contiguous markets, People’s United introduced a new name and logo in June. The timing provided the bank the opportunity to enter new markets — like Westchester — with a distinctive brand that leverages the equity of the People’s Bank name while adding a powerful, contemporary feel with a new logo. The new name — People’s United Bank — underscores the fact that the bank and its employees are united in their commitment to customers, shareholders and the communities we serve. This has, and will continue to be, the fundamental principle guiding our growth, as is highlighted in the bank’s new tagline: “Everything starts with you.” Whether you’re a customer, a shareholder or an employee, People’s United can only be successful with your support. It’s what has made us who we are for 165 years and who we will continue to be as we move forward in this exciting time of growth for our bank. The People’s United Bank headquarters building in Bridgeport, Connecticut displays the company’s newly introduced logo. The bank also rebranded itself this year and adopted a new tagline, “Everything starts with you.”
Building the Premier Regional Banking Franchise in New England With the close of its second-step conversion in April 2007, People’s United raised $3.44 billion in a public offering of common stock. The company announced in June that it had reached a definitive agreement to acquire the Chittenden Corporation, based in Burlington, Vermont, and its family of six banks serving customers throughout New England. The transaction delivered on the company’s promise to shareholders to put to work the newly raised capital with the acquisition of a bank in a contiguous market, sharing a similar balance sheet, management style and culture. When the transaction closes early next year, it will bring together two like-minded companies focused on building the premier regional banking franchise in New England. People’s United will have more than 300 branches, stretching from Maine, through New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut and into Westchester County.
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Executive Officers Jacinta A. Coleman Chief Information Officer
Bryan J. Huebner Consumer Financial Services
Henry R. Mandel Organization Effectiveness
Robert R. D’Amore Marketing & Regional Banking
John A. Klein Chairman & Chief Executive Officer
Philip R. Sherringham Chief Financial Officer
Brian F. Dreyer Commercial Banking
William T. Kosturko General Counsel
Mark K. Vitelli Direct Banking & Operations
Valerie J. Arch First Vice President Commercial Services
Walter S. Dusza, Jr. First Vice President Auditing
Roger L. Perry First Vice President Wealth Management & Trust
Cynthia P. Belak First Vice President Marketing
Harold F. Geissler First Vice President Commercial Lending
Frances Ricci First Vice President Corporate Counsel
David P. Berey Senior Vice President Commercial Lending
Armando F. Goncalves First Vice President Regional Banking
Vincent E. Santilli First Vice President Regional Banking
Christina M. Bliven First Vice President Acting Controller
Thomas G. Healey First Vice President Commercial Real Estate
Peter J. Scotch, Jr. Senior Vice President Consumer Deposit Products
David A. Bodor Senior Vice President Chief Credit Administration Officer
Walter W. Kaercher First Vice President Commercial Lending
Susan D. Stanley First Vice President Corporate Secretary
Peter M. Brestovan First Vice President Real Estate Services
Ellen M. Kritemeyer First Vice President Residential Lending
Maria A. Stolfi First Vice President Human Resources
John G. Bundschuh First Vice President Commercial Lending
Sara M. Longobardi Senior Vice President Regional Banking
Robert E. Trautmann First Vice President Corporate Counsel
Timothy L. Callahan First Vice President Chief Information Security Officer
Srihari N. Makkala Senior Vice President Chief Technology Officer
Bradford H. Wainman First Vice President Commercial Real Estate
Valerie C. Carlson First Vice President Corporate Communications
Patricia A. Manion Senior Vice President Operations and eBusiness
Wayne C. Walker Senior Vice President Residential Lending
Michael J. Casparino First Vice President Regional Banking
David S. Marsh Senior Vice President Chief Applications Officer
Kenneth L. Weinstein Senior Vice President Operational Risk Management
Linda M. Cheever First Vice President Corporate Finance
Susan A. Matlos First Vice President Financial Services
Kathleen D. Zembrzuski First Vice President Residential Lending
Ellen P. Davis Senior Vice President National Credits Lending
Thomas J. Pantello Senior Vice President Commercial Real Estate
Senior Officers
People’s United Bank Subsidiaries PEOPLE’S CAPITAL AND LEASING CORP. Vincent R. Cianciolo President Robert Massaro Chief Operating Officer
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PEOPLE’S SECURITIES, INC. Michael E. Harkins President & Chief Executive Officer
R.C. KNOX AND COMPANY, INC. John F. Byrnes Chief Executive Officer Harold A. Smullen, Jr. Chief Operating Officer
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EQUAL HOUSING L E N D E R
People’s United Bank
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850 Main Street
Bridgeport, Connecticut 06604
peoples.com
Member FDIC
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