Joseph Murphy Jr.
About Joseph M. Murphy, Jr.
Joseph M. Murphy, Jr., age 66, is an independent director of OceanFirst Financial Corp. (OCFC) serving since 2020. He chairs the Finance Committee and sits on the Information Technology Committee, bringing deep banking, real estate finance, and capital markets expertise as the former President & CEO of Country Bank and co-founder/principal of ValuExpress LLC; he holds a BSBA from the University of Denver and an MS in Real Estate Finance from New York University .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Country Bank Holding Company / Country Bank (Manhattan-based community bank acquired by OCFC Jan 2020) | President & CEO | — (prior to Jan 2020 acquisition) | Led a New York market community bank; strategic and market expertise carried into OCFC board service |
| ValuExpress LLC (commercial mortgage conduit) | Co-founder; Principal | — | Originated over $2.0B in loans; capital markets and CRE underwriting expertise |
| Value Investors, Inc. (family investment office) | President | — | Longstanding investment management across real estate holdings |
| American Bankers Association – Community Bankers Council | Member | — | Broader industry engagement and policy perspective |
| American Red Cross, Greater New York Chapter | Board of Trustees | — | Non-profit governance experience |
| Congregation of Christian Brothers | Finance Advisory Committee | — | Advisory oversight on finance matters |
External Roles
| Organization | Role | Tenure | Committees/Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| Iona University | Trustee | — | University board governance experience |
| Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation (NY Chapter) | Board of Directors (prior) | — | Non-profit board exposure |
Board Governance
- Committee assignments: Finance Committee Chair; Information Technology Committee member. Finance met 4 times in 2024; IT met 5 times in 2024 .
- Independence: Board has 11 of 13 independent members; the two non-independent are CEO Christopher Maher and COO Joseph Lebel; Murphy is independent .
- Attendance and engagement: All directors attended at least 75% of Board and relevant committee meetings; Board held 11 meetings in 2024. All directors attended the 2024 Annual Meeting virtually .
- Board leadership and oversight practices: Combined Chair/CEO with a Lead Director (Anthony R. Coscia), executive sessions of independent directors at every regularly scheduled Board meeting; Audit, Compensation, Leadership, and Risk Committees composed entirely of independent directors .
- Technology and risk oversight: IT Committee provides oversight of technology strategy and cybersecurity, including AI initiatives, and technology-related risk management .
Fixed Compensation
| Component | Amount (USD) | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Fees Earned or Paid in Cash (2024) | $110,000 | Includes Board retainers and committee chair fees |
| Stock Awards (Grant Date Fair Value, 2024) | $50,008 | 3,354 restricted shares granted in 2024, vesting over three years |
| All Other Compensation (2024) | $4,891 | Primarily cash dividends on vested restricted stock |
| Total (2024) | $164,899 |
Director retainer structure (policy):
- Annual Bank retainer: $45,000; Annual Company retainer: $50,000; Committee chair additional retainer: $7,500 per entity (joint committee chair retainer totals $15,000); Lead Director additional retainer: $12,500 per entity. Company equity grants are restricted stock that vests over three years .
Performance Compensation
Director equity is time-based (no performance metrics). Grants and vesting:
| Grant Year | Shares Granted | Vesting Schedule | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 2,109 | 33.3% per year commencing March 1 following grant | Director RSU grant (time-based) |
| 2024 | 3,354 | 33.3% per year commencing March 1 following grant | Director RSU grant (time-based) |
| 2025 | 2,778 | 33.3% per year commencing March 1 following grant | Director RSU grant (time-based) |
- Performance metrics tied to director compensation: None disclosed; director equity grants are time-based restricted stock, not PSU/options-based performance pay .
Other Directorships & Interlocks
| Category | Detail |
|---|---|
| Current public company boards | None disclosed in OCFC proxy |
| Non-profit/academic boards | Trustee, Iona University; prior roles with JDRF (NY Chapter), American Red Cross (Greater NY), finance advisory at Congregation of Christian Brothers |
| Interlocks/conflicts | No public-company interlocks disclosed; Board has a moratorium on related-party transactions beyond routine banking; no such transactions in 2024 |
Expertise & Qualifications
- Former bank CEO with substantial New York market and commercial real estate lending expertise; deep capital markets experience via ValuExpress .
- Finance Committee chair overseeing financial management, strategic and annual plan, and budget development .
- IT Committee member contributing to oversight of technology strategy, cybersecurity, and AI initiatives .
- Education: BSBA (University of Denver); MS in Real Estate Finance (NYU) .
Equity Ownership
| Metric | Value | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Total beneficial ownership | 320,995 shares | Includes 68,000 shares held by children and 72,800 shares via proportional corporate ownership |
| Options | None exercisable/unexercisable within 60 days | |
| Ownership as % of common shares | <1% | 58,380,940 shares outstanding entitled to vote as of Mar 25, 2025 |
| Unvested director RSUs (aggregate) | 5,717 shares | Comprised of 2023, 2024, 2025 grants; vesting 33.3% annually |
| Pledging status | No shares pledged by directors as of Mar 25, 2025 | Hedging/pledging prohibited absent Board approval |
| Ownership guideline compliance | All directors in compliance (requirement: ≥3x annual Company retainer; net share retention until in compliance) |
Governance Assessment
- Board effectiveness: Strong alignment with investor oversight through Murphy’s chairing of Finance (strategy and budget oversight; 4 meetings in 2024) and participation in IT (technology/cyber/AI risk oversight; 5 meetings in 2024), supporting robust financial and operational supervision .
- Independence & engagement: Murphy is independent; Board uses executive sessions of independent directors at every regular meeting, and all directors met the ≥75% attendance threshold with 11 Board meetings in 2024, indicating disciplined engagement .
- Ownership alignment and compensation: Mix of cash retainers and multi-year time-based equity grants, with director ownership guidelines (≥3x Company retainer) and net share retention until compliant; no pledging, and anti-hedging policy enhances alignment and reduces risk .
- Conflicts/related-party exposure: No loans or related-party transactions reported involving Murphy; Board has moratorium on such transactions beyond routine banking; only one insider loan disclosed (COO Lebel at employee-rate terms), which was made under permitted policies .
- RED FLAGS: None identified for Murphy—no pledging, no reported related-party transactions, no delinquent Section 16 filings noted for him, and director training/topics (Cybersecurity, AI, CRE) suggest an engaged board on evolving risks .
Context signal: Say-on-pay support was ~83% in 2024, indicating generally positive shareholder sentiment toward OCFC’s compensation practices, though this relates to executive pay rather than director pay .