Santander Bank announced Paul Cronin has been selected to lead the bank’s asset based lending business in its Commercial Banking division. Cronin will be responsible for growing Santander’s ABL business, a full-service provider with a highly diversified portfolio and particular expertise in equipment financing, wholesale trade and financial services. Cronin reports to David Swoyer, Santander Bank’s Head of Commercial Banking.

Cronin joins Santander from KeyBank, where he most recently served as head of ABL and Commercial Dealer Finance. At KeyBank, Cronin significantly grew its ABL business by expanding debt capital markets penetration, improving client focus, and strengthening underwriting and risk management processes. He also co-led the integration and transition process following the KeyBank and First Niagara merger. Prior to that, Cronin served as Head of Asset Based Lending at First Niagara, and earlier in his career he held senior corporate and commercial banking positions at HSBC and RBS. Cronin earned a Master’s in Business Studies (MBS) in Finance from University College Dublin in Ireland. He resides in Darien, CT.
 
Santander also has appointed Arthur Pesavento as Senior Vice President and Business Development Officer in its ABL group. Pesavento is based in Chicago and reports to Cronin.

Before joining Santander, Pesavento was a Managing Director at Gemino Healthcare Finance where he launched the business development efforts in Chicago and throughout the Midwest. Prior to Gemino, Pesavento was responsible for all aspects of sales and marketing as an SVP and Managing Director at Sterling National Bank/NewStar Business Credit.

“We have a strong growth and profitability plan in place for the commercial businesses in the U.S. The collective experience of Paul and Arthur, plus their industry knowledge and leadership record in the asset based lending space, perfectly align with our goals,” said Swoyer. “We’re committed to continue investing in growing our capabilities in the asset based lending space, and having a seasoned, experienced team, with the ability to scale this type of portfolio, will help us get there.”