FirstMerit Appoints Richardson as North Coast Regional Commercial Banking Executive

FirstMerit Appoints Richardson as North Coast Regional Commercial Banking
Executive

AKRON, Ohio, July 14 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- FirstMerit Corporation (Nasdaq:
FMER) announces the hiring of Sean P. Richardson as North Coast Regional
Commercial Banking Executive. Prior to joining FirstMerit, he held the
position of Executive Vice President and Managing Director of Corporate
Banking Middle Market Northcoast - East Team for National City Corporation.

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Richardson is responsible for all aspects of Commercial and Business Banking
for the North Coast assigned region, and will plan and implement regional
business plan objectives. He reports directly to Mark Grescovich, Executive
Vice President, Commercial Banking.

"We are excited to bring Sean into the organization," Grescovich said. "Not
only does he bring a depth and breadth of organizational and performance
experience to FirstMerit, he brings 24 years of serving and advising
owner-managed businesses in the Northern Ohio market."

Richardson will oversee Commercial Business Banking in FirstMerit's North
Coast Region, which includes Cleveland and reaches from Ashtabula to Toledo.

"FirstMerit has increased its commercial loan portfolio by 10 percent in the
last year, but we look to Richardson to help us bring an even higher level of
success to the organization and our clients," said Paul G. Greig, chairman,
president and CEO of FirstMerit.

Richardson earned his MBA at the Weatherhead School of Management at Case
Western Reserve University and received his Bachelor's Degree in Business
Administration from the University of Notre Dame. He is a member of the board
of trustees at the Cleveland Foodbank, is co-chair of the 2009-2010 Eastern
Market Team at the United Way of Greater Cleveland and has served as chairman
of the American Heart Association's Start! Heart Walk. He resides in Shaker
Heights with his wife and three children.

About FirstMerit
FirstMerit Corporation is a diversified financial services company
headquartered in Akron, Ohio, with assets of $11.0 billion as of March 31,
2009 and 158 banking offices and 172 ATMs in 25 Ohio and Western Pennsylvania
counties. FirstMerit provides a complete range of banking and other financial
services to consumers and businesses through its core operations. Principal
wholly-owned subsidiaries include: FirstMerit Bank, N.A., FirstMerit Mortgage
Corporation, FirstMerit Title Agency, Ltd., and FirstMerit Community
Development Corporation.
FirstMerit Corporation
Media Contact: Rob Townsend
Phone: 330.384.7075
E-mail: robert.townsend@firstmerit.com

SOURCE FirstMerit Corporation

Media: Rob Townsend, FirstMerit Corporation, +1-330-384-7075,
robert.townsend@firstmerit.com