The US banking operations of the Leumi Group, an Israeli banking group, has appointed former North Fork Bank vice president, Denis Byrne, vice president and manager of its downtown commercial and private banking office. The branch is located in the heart of New York’s “garment centre” and is responsible for servicing the textiles and apparel middle-market, including importers, distributors, manufacturers, and retailers of men’s, women’s, and children’s clothing and accessories, a statement said. In the US, Bank Leumi is a full-service commercial bank that provides financial services to middle and upper-middle market firms, international businesses, and not-for-profit organisations through offices in New York, Illinois, California, Florida and an offshore office in the Cayman Islands. This is the second senior management appointment the group has made in the US in as many months. In February the bank announced the appointment of a former Citigroup senior technology officer, Sidney Gottesman, as executive vice president and chief operating officer of Bank Leumi USA. Mr Byrne will report to Yair Talmor, the bank’s USA senior executive vice president The Leumi Group serves clients around the world through more than 300 branches and offices in Israel, major world financial centers in 21 countries and a broad network of correspondent banks, according to the group.