First Financial Bancorp Nominates Dawn Morris and Andre Porter to Board of Directors, as Corinne Finnerty to Retire

CINCINNATI, March 27, 2023 /PRNewswire/ -- First Financial Bancorp's (Nasdaq: FFBC) Board of Directors has nominated Dawn Morris and Andre Porter as directors, with elections on their positions to take place during the board's annual meeting of shareholders scheduled on Tuesday, May 23, 2023.

"Dawn and Andre are both excellent nominees to join the First Financial Board of Directors," said Claude Davis, chairman. "Dawn brings valuable experience in banking and broad expertise in business transformation and innovation, while Andre has extensive and varied business and leadership experience from both the private and public sectors."

First Financial CEO Archie Brown also commended the nominations. "Dawn's impressive accomplishments in the financial services sector position her well to offer valuable insights as we deliver relevant and customized solutions for our clients," Brown said. "Andre's business, legal and state government expertise should also serve us well in the areas of regulatory strategy, governance, corporate and personnel strategy, and environmental, social and governance (ESG) plans."

Mrs. Morris, 55, is the founder and CEO of Growth Partners Group, a strategic consulting firm in Florida, serving clients in strategic business transformation and innovation. Prior to opening the firm, she was the chief digital and marketing officer for First Horizon Bank in Tennessee. Mrs. Morris worked previously as executive vice president and chief marketing officer for Webster Bank, after holding earlier roles with RBS Citizens Financial Group and RBC Bank. She is a graduate of the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and served as a captain in the Army.

Mr. Porter, 43, is senior vice president, chief legal officer and corporate secretary at Indiana-based Midcontinent Independent System Operator (MISO), which is responsible for an energy market that transmits electricity to 15 states. In previous roles, he served as chairman of the Public Utilities Commission of Ohio (PUCO), director of the Ohio Department of Commerce, PUCO commissioner, and an attorney in private practice. Mr. Porter is chairman of the board at Capital University, where he has been a member of the board since 2007 and from which he earned his bachelor's degree. He holds his J.D. from The Ohio State University.

First Financial also announces that Corinne Finnerty will retire from the board when her current term expires, at the end of the board meeting on May 23. Ms. Finnerty joined the board of First Financial in 1998.

"The board expresses our sincere gratitude to Corinne for more than two decades of service," Davis said. "Corinne has provided trusted and valued guidance through numerous economic cycles as First Financial has grown to help more clients and communities thrive."

About First Financial Bancorp.
First Financial Bancorp. is a Cincinnati, Ohio based bank holding company. As of December 31, 2022, the Company had $17.0 billion in assets, $10.3 billion in loans, $12.7 billion in deposits and $2.0 billion in shareholders' equity. The Company's subsidiary, First Financial Bank, founded in 1863, provides banking and financial services products through its six lines of business: Commercial, Retail Banking, Investment Commercial Real Estate, Mortgage Banking, Commercial Finance and Wealth Management. These business units provide traditional banking services to business and retail clients. Wealth Management provides wealth planning, portfolio management, trust and estate, brokerage and retirement plan services and had approximately $3.2 billion in assets under management as of December 31, 2022. The Company operated 132 full service banking centers as of December 31, 2022, located in Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky and Illinois, while the Commercial Finance business lends into targeted industry verticals on a nationwide basis. Additional information about the Company, including its products, services and banking locations, is available at www.bankatfirst.com.

SOURCE First Financial Bancorp.