BOSTON, Jan. 2, 2007 – Richard E. Holbrook has been elected by the Eastern Bank Board of Directors to the position of chairman and chief executive officer, the bank announced today. Holbrook joined Eastern Bank in 1996 as its chief financial officer and was promoted to president in 2001.  His most recent promotion completes a transition that began five years ago, when Stanley J. Lukowski announced his plan to retire as chairman and CEO at the end of 2006.  The Board also elected Robert F. Rivers to succeed Holbrook as bank president.  Both promotions were effective Jan. 1.

“A few titles may have changed, but our commitment to our customers, our communities and our employees remains the same,” Holbrook said.  “We are going to remain a mutually owned bank.  Combining private ownership with trusted financial advice will enable Eastern to be the best place our customers bank, the best place our employees work and the best citizen our communities will ever know.

“I’m grateful to Stan and the Board for the confidence they have displayed in me to build upon our legacy of superior service and growth,” Holbrook added.

Holbrook began his banking career in 1980 at Connecticut Bank & Trust Company, where he held a variety of lending, investment management and strategic planning positions in New Haven and Hartford.  In 1987, following CBT’s merger with Bank of New England, he was named controller and moved to Boston.

From 1993 until 1996, Holbrook was an executive vice president and chief financial officer of OsteoArthritis Sciences Inc. in Cambridge, a venture capital-financed biotechnology company.

Holbrook earned his undergraduate degree at Yale University, and his MBA from the Harvard Business School.  He lives in Medfield with his wife and their two sons.

Rivers, who joined Eastern in February 2006 as vice chairman and chief banking officer, began his banking career in 1986 at the former Old Stone Bank in Providence.  From 1991 to 2005, Rivers headed a number of regional retail and commercial groups at Manufacturers & Traders Trust Co. in Buffalo, N.Y.  In 2005, he joined Commercial Federal Bank in Omaha, Neb., where he was the executive vice president for retail banking until it was acquired by Bank of the West.

A native of Stoughton, Rivers earned his undergraduate degree at Stonehill College and his MBA from the University of Rochester.  Rivers lives in Needham with his wife and their two children.

About Eastern Bank Corporation
Founded in 1818 and based in Boston, Eastern Bank is the largest independent, mutually owned commercial banking franchise in New England.  With $6.5 billion in assets and more than 70 branches stretching from Merrimack Valley to Cape Cod, Eastern offers superior service, convenience and a full range of financial products for consumers, businesses, investors, government agencies and not-for-profit organizations.  Its subsidiaries include Eastern Insurance and Fantini & Gorga, a real estate advisory firm.

For more information, contact Joe Bartolotta, Public Relations Director,
Eastern Bank (781) 596-4411, or e-mail Joe Bartolotta.