A tight-knit crew of banking veterans and a Pittsburgh lawyer is trying to launch a new player on the local finance scene: Sagehaven Bancorp NA, a proposed nationally chartered bank that would call the Strip District home. The six-person team says it wants to zero in on small and mid-size businesses along with mid-to-high-net-worth customers. If regulators sign off, it would be Pittsburgh’s first de novo bank in nearly 20 years.
As reported by Pittsburgh Business Times, the organizers filed a national charter application with federal regulators on July 14 and flagged the Strip District as the proposed headquarters. The outlet notes that Brian Tabb, who left his post as senior vice president of corporate treasury at BNY Mellon in March, is slated to serve as president and CEO, and that conversations about forming the bank started in the second half of 2025.
Speaking with Banking Dive, Tabb said he sees an opening for more personalized commercial lending and wealth services in the region and talked about wanting to “immerse” himself in the community as his daughters grow up here. Banking Dive reports that co-founders include former BNY and Huntington executive Angelo Innamorato and Houston Harbaugh partner Jared Leland, and that the group is eyeing April 2027 for opening day.
Local Focus With A Wider Net
Founders told local reporters they chose a national charter so the bank could serve customers with business spanning Pennsylvania, Ohio and West Virginia instead of being confined to a single state, according to Pittsburgh Business Times. They say the strategy is to blend modern tech with old-school relationship banking and, in theory, move faster than many long-tenured community lenders.
Regulators Hold The Clock
The organizers have submitted applications to both the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency and the FDIC, although the public version of the charter filing had not yet appeared on the OCC website when reporters checked, according to Banking Dive. Federal regulators generally have about 120 days to review new charter applications and either push back with questions or move toward conditional approval, a timeline the Sagehaven team says it is watching closely while it raises capital.
What Another Bank Means For Pittsburgh
Pittsburgh remains a major banking hub, home to PNC’s headquarters and large BNY Mellon operations, and another lender focused on mid-market commercial borrowers could get a warm welcome from local business advocates. The fact that Sagehaven would be the city’s first de novo bank in almost two decades has been highlighted by WPXI.
Regulators will ultimately decide whether Sagehaven’s business plan, leadership roster and capital strategy clear the bar for a national bank charter. For now, the industry will be watching for the OCC or FDIC to post public filings and for any new signals from the founding team as the review moves ahead.
