<br />
Thursday, December 1, 2011<br />
<br />
Banker of the Year<br />
BeSt In BankInG<br />
Throwback Approach Keeps<br />
Wilmers, M&T on Top<br />
<br />
W By Matt Monks<br />
hen Robert Wilmers retired as the chief<br />
executive of M&T Bank Corp. in 2005,<br />
he gave little indication that he would<br />
someday return to the corner office.<br />
Sure, Wilmers remained the Buffalo, N.Y., compa-<br />
ny’s chairman and was still involved in major deci-<br />
sions, but he was 71 and M&T seemed in good hands<br />
with a new CEO, whom Wilmers had been grooming<br />
for years.<br />
It turned out, though, that his hand-picked suc-<br />
cessor, Robert Sadler, didn’t like the job much and<br />
in 2007 — after <a title="83762 American Banker page 1" href="http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/2bfc98a9?page=1">Thursday, December 1, 2011Banker of the YearBe</a> Thursday, December 1, 2011Banker of the YearBe<a title="83762 American Banker page 2" href="http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/2bfc98a9?page=2">Banker of the Year 2011 “One devoutly wishes</a> Banker of the Year 2011 “One devoutly wishes<a title="83762 American Banker page 3" href="http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/2bfc98a9?page=3"></a> <a title="83762 American Banker page 4" href="http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/2bfc98a9?page=4">Banker of the Year 2011desk, just a messy spre</a> Banker of the Year 2011desk, just a messy spre<a title="83762 American Banker page 5" href="http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/2bfc98a9?page=5">Banker of the Year 2011obscured by a number of</a> Banker of the Year 2011obscured by a number of<a title="83762 American Banker page 6" href="http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/2bfc98a9?page=6">Banker of the Year 2011 He also resents that </a> Banker of the Year 2011 He also resents that