Ralph Mandell
Ralph B. Mandell is Chairman Emeritus and co-founder of PrivateBancorp, Inc. He had served as Chairman, Chief Executive and President until November 2007, when he turned over the President and CEO role to Larry D. Richman.
Mandell led PrivateBancorp’s growth from a start-up in 1989 through its initial public stock offering in 1999 to a Company with over $6 billion in assets and 22 offices when he relinquished day-to-day oversight. In 2007, Mandell was named Entrepreneur of the Year for the Lake Michigan Area by Ernst & Young.
Prior to organizing PrivateBancorp in 1989, Mandell, who has been in the banking industry for over 40 years, was President of First United Financial Services, Inc., which was acquired by the former First Chicago Corporation in 1987.
Active in numerous civic and charitable affairs, he is a member of the Board of Directors of The One Hundred Club, Chicago; The Chicago Anti-Defamation League; and, the Midwest Region of Operation HOPE. He is a past president of The Bankers Club of Chicago and for 24 years a Board member and Vice Chairman of Gottlieb Health Resources. Mandell received the 2009 Americanism Award from the Anti-Defamation League of Chicago and he was the 2007 recipient of the Operation HOPE Chairman’s Award for his part in leading the Bank in recruiting volunteers to teach the basics of financial literacy to over 800 Chicago area students. He has also been honored by Keshet, which provides schooling for developmentally disabled children, for his outstanding service and longstanding support of the organization.
Mandell is a graduate of the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. He and his wife Bonnie have two married sons and four grandchildren.
