Exhibit 99

PRESS RELEASE OF PROVIDENT NEW YORK BANCORP

Exhibit 99

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE	Stock Symbol: PBNY
October 23, 2008	Traded on NASDAQ Global Select Market

PROVIDENT BANK CONTACT:

Paul A. Maisch, EVP & Chief Financial Officer

Miranda Grimm, VP & Controller

845.369.8040

PROVIDENT NEW YORK BANCORP: 27.1% INCREASE IN YEARLY EPS TO $0.61 AND

30.8% QUARTERLY EPS TO $0.17.

MONTEBELLO, NY – October 23, 2008 – Provident New York Bancorp (Nasdaq-Global Select Market: PBNY), the parent company of Provident Bank, today announced fourth quarter results for the fiscal year ended September 30, 2008. Net income for the quarter was $6.5 million, or $0.17 per diluted share, compared to net income of $5.1 million, or $0.13 per diluted share for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2007. For the year ended September 30, 2008, net income was $23.8 million or $0.61 per diluted share, compared to $19.6 million or $0.48 per diluted share in fiscal 2007. This represents increases of 21.1% and 27.1% respectively, over the year ended September 30, 2007.

Highlights for the quarter include:

• Net interest margin on a fully tax-equivalent basis was 4.16% for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2008, as compared to 3.72% for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2007, and 4.04%, which represents a 12 basis point increase over the linked quarter ended June 30, 2008.

• The Company achieved 16% and 12% deposit growth over fiscal year-end 2007 and the third quarter of fiscal 2008, respectively. Transaction accounts of $820.8 million have grown 56% since September 30, 2007 due in large part to short-term seasonal municipal deposits of $242 million.

• Loans grew $93.5 million or 5.7% over year-end 2007, mainly in the Commercial sector.

• Non-interest expense increased by 2.4% compared to the fourth quarter of 2007 while revenues (net interest income plus non-interest income) grew 13.6%.

• The quarter’s efficiency ratio continued to improve from 70.1% in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2007 to 63.2% in the current quarter.

• Net charge-offs for the quarter were $1.0 million, compared to $812,000 for the linked quarter, and $910,000 for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2007.

President’s Comments

George Strayton, President and CEO, commented: “I’m pleased to report that through the challenging economic environment, our proven business model continued to perform well. Provident’s earnings were up significantly. Our ongoing disciplined management of interest expense and asset quality, coupled with our loan growth, enabled us to finish the year with a net interest margin over 4%. In

Provident New York Bancorp Press Release cont. 7

keeping with the best interests of our customers and shareholders, Provident does not originate sub prime residential mortgage loans and did not hold any GSE preferred stock that needs to be written down. With our commercial loan growth up 8.3%, coupled with small business charge-offs ,we increased loan loss provisions over the previous year by $5.4 million to improve Loan Loss Reserves at 1.33% of total loans. In addition, solid fee income, coupled with greater expense control, led to an improvement in our efficiency ratio of 645 basis points compared to year-end 2007. In short, Provident’s conservative, community based approach to full-service banking and lending has enabled us to avoid the problems experienced by many large, national banks and Wall Street firms. We continue to be a solid bank with strong capital and asset quality”.

Net Interest Income and Margin

Fourth quarter fiscal 2008 compared with fourth quarter fiscal 2007

Net interest income was $25.5 million for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2008, a $3.3 million increase from the same quarter of fiscal 2007. The net interest margin on a tax-equivalent basis was 4.16% for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2008, compared to 3.72% for the prior year’s fourth quarter. Due to decreases in the federal funds target rate, the yield on loan balances declined 93 basis points. For the same period, the cost of interest-bearing deposits decreased 114 basis points to 1.54% and the cost of borrowings decreased 129 basis points to 3.5%. The tax-equivalent yield on investments increased 25 basis points compared to the same quarter in 2007.

Fourth quarter fiscal 2008 compared with linked quarter ended June 30, 2008

Net interest income increased $1.3 million from the quarter ended June 30, 2008. The tax-equivalent net interest margin increased 12 basis points from 4.04% for the quarter ended June 30, 2008. As a result of the recent reductions in the federal funds target rate, the tax-equivalent yield on average interest-earning assets decreased by 3 basis points compared to the quarter ended June 30, 2008. The cost of average interest-bearing liabilities decreased 19 basis points from the same linked quarter end. We attribute a substantial portion of this decrease to a continuing disciplined approach to pricing interest-bearing deposits.

Year-to-date comparison of fiscal 2008 to fiscal 2007

For the year ended September 30, 2008, net interest income increased $10.6 million compared to 2007, with the tax-equivalent net interest margin increasing from 3.57% to 3.96%.

Non-Interest Income

Fourth quarter fiscal 2008 compared with fourth quarter fiscal 2007

Non-interest income increased 7.9% to $5.3 million from the fourth quarter of fiscal 2007. Deposit service charges and fees increased $290,000 or 9.8%.

Fourth quarter fiscal 2008 compared with linked quarter ended June 30, 2008

Non-interest income increased 5.6% mainly due to deposit service charges and fees. All categories of non-interest income except gains on securities increased over the linked quarter. There were no sales of securities during the fourth quarter of 2008.

Year-to-date comparison of fiscal 2008 to fiscal 2007

Non-interest income increased 6% compared to the full year 2007. Excluding security gains, the largest increases were seen in deposit service charges and fees and investment management fees. Declines were seen in title insurance fees, bank owned life insurance (due to a death benefit received in 2007) and “other” non-interest income (due to an IRS interest refund and receipt of fees applicable to exiting the student loan business in 2007). Gains on the sale of investment securities increased substantially in 2008 as the Company recorded a $983,000 gain.

Provident New York Bancorp Press Release cont. 8

Non-Interest Expense

Fourth quarter fiscal 2008 compared with fourth quarter fiscal 2007

Non-interest expense increased 2.4% over the fourth quarter of fiscal 2007. The primary reason for the increase was compensation and employee benefits. Partially offsetting this were lower costs due to the maturity of the Company’s first-step ESOP loan in December 2007 and advertising and promotion expense. Compensation and employee benefits increased due to employee related benefits, higher incentive expense and additional employees hired, as the Company added resources to its municipal bank business and opened a branch location in Tarrytown, Westchester County, N.Y. Occupancy expense increased as the Company invested in branch relocations in 2008.

Fourth quarter fiscal 2008 compared with linked quarter ended June 30, 2008

On a quarter-to-quarter basis, non-interest expense increased by 2.9% with increases seen in compensation and benefits, ATM / debit card and occupancy expense, which were offset by declines in advertising and promotion, professional fees, and data and check processing.

Year-to-date comparison of fiscal 2008 to fiscal 2007

Non-interest expense increased by $910,000, or 1.2%, over year-to-date 2007, primarily due to compensation and benefits, and occupancy expense from increases in rental costs and the costs of branch relocations and closures. These categories were partially offset by decreases in stock based compensation (the ESOP loan maturity), professional fees, and advertising and promotion.

Income Taxes

The Company’s effective tax rate was 29.7% for the fourth quarter of fiscal 2008, compared to 31.5% for the same period last year. The decrease was due to increased investment in tax-exempt securities and the maturity of the first-step ESOP loan, which was primarily non-deductible expense. The Company’s effective tax rate for the linked quarter ended June 30, 2008 was 28.8%. The effective tax rate for fiscal year 2008 was 29.4% compared to 30.4% for fiscal 2007.

Key Balance Sheet Changes at September 30, 2008 vs. September 30, 2007

• Gross loans grew $93.5 million to $1.7 billion, largely due to an 8.3% increase in commercial loans and a 2.5% increase in residential mortgage loans.

• Securities increased $2.3 million to $834.7 million, as the Company maintained collateral for municipal deposits.

• Period-end deposits increased $276 million at September 30, 2008, as compared to September 30, 2007, primarily due to increases in transaction accounts of $294.5 million or 56%, of which $242.3 million is due to short-term seasonal municipal deposits.

Capital

Capital decreased $5.9 million from September 30, 2007 to $399.2 million at September 30, 2008, due to purchases of treasury stock. Treasury stock repurchases were minimal during the fourth quarter of fiscal 2008 and totaled 1.6 million shares for the 2008 fiscal year, at a cost of $20.2 million. These purchases were partially offset by increases in the Company’s retained earnings of $14.3 million and stock based compensation vesting of $5.1 million. A decline in other comprehensive income (loss) of $5.4 million, added to the overall decrease in capital. As of September 30, 2008, 1,165,901 shares remain available for repurchase under the Company’s current stock repurchase program. Capital ratios remained strong with a Tier 1 capital ratio exceeding 8%.

Provident New York Bancorp Press Release cont. 9

Credit Quality

Net charge-offs for the quarter were $1.0 million compared to $812,000 in the prior linked quarter and $910,000 for the quarter ended September 30, 2007. Net charge-offs for the full year were $4.5 million or 0.27% of the average loan portfolio, compared to $1.8 million or 0.12% for the year ended September 30, 2007. Losses continue to be concentrated in the credit-scored community business loan portfolio. Net charge-offs in the community business loan portfolio for the fourth quarter were $996,000 on average outstandings of $102.8 million. During the quarter the Company provided $2.1 million in loan loss provisions, which was $1.1 million in excess of net charge-offs. This resulted in an increase in the allowance for loan losses to $23.1 million, or 1.33% of loans outstanding, and 137% of non-performing loans. The primary reasons for increasing the allowance for loan losses were growth in the commercial and industrial and construction loan portfolios and the general economic slowdown. For the year ended September 30, 2008, provisions for loan losses were $7.2 million compared to $1.8 million for the year ended September 30, 2007. Nonperforming loans increased $2.6 million in the fourth quarter to $16.9 million compared to June 30, 2008, primarily in the area of real estate development.

Additional Information

The Company does not hold any preferred stock of either FNMA or FHLMC (Fannie Mae or Freddie Mac) and currently has 120 shares (with an original cost of less than $1,000) of FNMA common stock. The Company holds $30 million in Federal Home Loan Bank short-term debentures in its securities portfolio and holds $605.1 million in mortgage backed securities issued by FHLMC and FNMA and approximately $12.8 million in private label CMO pass through securities.

Note:

In addition to historical information, this earnings release may contain forward-looking statements for purposes of applicable securities laws. Any statements contained herein that are not statements of historical fact may be deemed to be forward-looking statements. Forward-looking statements are subject to numerous assumptions, risks and uncertainties. There are a number of important factors described in documents previously filed by the Company with the Securities and Exchange Commission, and other factors that could cause the Company’s actual results to differ materially from those contemplated by such forward-looking statements. The Company undertakes no obligation to publicly release the results of any revisions to those forward-looking statements which may be made to reflect events or circumstances after the date of this release or to reflect the occurrence of unanticipated events.

Headquartered in Montebello, New York, Provident Bank is an independent full-service community bank. Provident Bank operates 33 branches that serve the Hudson Valley region and Bergen County, New Jersey. The bank offers a complete line of commercial, retail and investment management and trust services. Visit the Provident Bank web site at www.providentbanking.com.

Provident New York Bancorp Press Release cont. 10

Provident New York Bancorp and Subsidiaries

CONSOLIDATED CONDENSED STATEMENTS OF FINANCIAL CONDITION

(unaudited, in thousands, except share and per share data)

	September 30, 2008			September 30, 2007			June 30, 2008
Assets:
Cash and due from banks	$	125,810		$	47,291		$	46,208
Total securities		834,701			832,443			818,603
Loans held for sale		189			—			—
Loans:
One- to four-family residential mortgage loans		513,381			500,825			510,832
Commercial real estate, commercial business and construction loans		969,432			895,233			936,567
Consumer loans		248,740			242,000			240,452
Total loans, gross		1,731,553			1,638,058			1,687,851
Allowance for loan losses		(23,101	)		(20,389	)		(22,001	)
Total loans, net		1,708,452			1,617,669			1,665,850
Federal Home Loan Bank stock, at cost		28,675			32,801			31,823
Premises and equipment, net		36,716			30,079			34,625
Goodwill		160,861			161,154			160,861
Other amortizable intangibles		8,329			11,041			8,966
Bank owned life insurance		47,650			40,818			47,135
Other assets		32,988			28,803			36,483
Total assets	$	2,984,371		$	2,802,099		$	2,850,554
Liabilities:
Deposits
Demand deposits	$	487,890		$	363,731		$	384,381
NOW deposits		332,904			162,537			199,681
Total transaction accounts		820,794			526,268			584,062
Savings		335,986			346,430			351,431
Money market deposits		306,504			277,793			300,919
Certificates of deposit		525,913			563,193			539,308
Total deposits		1,989,197			1,713,684			1,775,720
Borrowings		566,008			661,242			635,596
Mortgage escrow funds and other		30,008			22,084			38,097
Total liabilities		2,585,213			2,397,010			2,449,413
Stockholders’ equity		399,158			405,089			401,141
Total liabilities and stockholders’ equity	$	2,984,371		$	2,802,099		$	2,850,554
Shares of common stock outstanding at period end		39,815,213			41,230,618			39,839,335
Book value per share	$	10.03		$	9.82		$	10.07

Provident New York Bancorp Press Release cont. 11

Provident New York Bancorp and Subsidiaries

CONSOLIDATED CONDENSED STATEMENTS OF INCOME

(Unaudited, in thousands, except share and per share data)

	Quarter Ended September 30,					Quarter Ended June 30, 2008		Year to Date Ended September 30,
	2008		2007					2008		2007
Interest and dividend income:
Loans and loan fees	$	26,532	$	29,092		$	25,630	$	107,633	$	109,940
Securities		9,656		9,340			9,774		38,779		39,264
Other earning assets		518		603			662		2,570		2,422
		36,706		39,035			36,066		148,982		151,626
Interest expense:
Deposits		5,449		9,454			6,187		28,344		36,439
Borrowings		5,720		7,338			5,691		25,298		30,449
Total interest expense		11,169		16,792			11,878		53,642		66,888
Net interest income		25,537		22,243			24,188		95,340		84,738
Provision for loan losses		2,100		600			1,400		7,200		1,800
Net interest income after provision for loan losses		23,437		21,643			22,788		88,140		82,938
Non-interest income:
Deposit fees and service charges		3,246		2,956			3,100		12,429		11,434
Net gain on sales of securities		—		(11	)		22		983		(8	)
Title insurance fees		300		326			274		919		1,181
Bank owned life insurance		515		431			455		1,832		2,044
Investment management fees		770		715			750		3,012		2,821
Other		475		501			423		1,867		2,373
Total non-interest income		5,306		4,918			5,024		21,042		19,845
Non-interest expense:
Compensation and benefits		10,109		8,973			9,245		37,045		33,490
Stock-based compensation plans		916		1,420			973		3,809		5,706
Occupancy and office operations		3,125		2,765			3,090		12,434		11,436
Advertising and promotion		710		1,212			933		3,338		4,237
Professional fees		751		851			813		3,339		3,833
Data and check processing		638		672			646		2,551		2,621
Amortization of intangible assets		611		716			636		2,599		3,039
ATM/debit card expense		524		516			456		1,936		1,881
Other		2,115		1,920			2,163		8,449		8,347
Total non-interest expense		19,499		19,045			18,955		75,500		74,590
Income before income tax expense		9,244		7,516			8,857		33,682		28,193
Income tax expense		2,749		2,368			2,551		9,904		8,566
Net income	$	6,495	$	5,148		$	6,306	$	23,778	$	19,627
Per common share:
Basic earnings	$	0.17	$	0.13		$	0.16	$	0.61	$	0.48
Diluted earnings		0.17		0.13			0.16		0.61		0.48
Dividends declared		0.06		0.05			0.06		0.24		0.20
Weighted average common shares:
Basic		38,589,361		40,101,720			38,719,917		38,907,372		40,782,643
Diluted		38,893,860		40,543,035			39,110,353		39,226,641		41,266,816

Provident New York Bancorp Press Release cont. 12

Selected Financial Condition Data:

	Three Months Ended
(in thousands except share and per share data)	09/30/08			06/30/08			03/31/08		12/31/07		09/30/07
	(In thousands)
End of Period
Total assets	$	2,984,371		$	2,850,554		$	2,823,506	$	2,799,342	$	2,802,099
Loans, gross (1)		1,731,553			1,687,851			1,653,638		1,655,437		1,638,058
Securities available for sale		791,688			777,161			801,784		780,714		794,997
Securities held to maturity		43,013			41,442			35,484		35,573		37,446
Bank owned life insurance		47,650			47,135			41,680		41,252		40,818
Goodwill		160,861			160,861			161,214		161,154		161,154
Other amortizable intangibles		8,329			8,966			9,633		10,324		11,041
Other non-earning assets		67,318			71,108			63,906		58,033		58,882
Deposits		1,989,197			1,775,720			1,722,101		1,672,538		1,713,684
Borrowings		566,008			635,596			664,115		686,508		661,242
Equity		399,158			401,141			408,163		401,923		405,089
Average Balances
Total assets	$	2,867,613		$	2,822,885		$	2,813,448	$	2,780,360	$	2,783,640
Loans, gross:
Real estate- residential mortgage		513,016			510,383			500,930		499,915		500,261
Real estate- commercial mortgage		552,930			528,308			530,267		537,440		539,618
Real estate- construction & land development		159,698			150,900			153,816		152,615		144,615
Commercial and industrial		244,537			229,122			219,782		210,425		205,832
Consumer loans		241,776			240,488			243,552		243,456		238,073
Loans total (1)		1,711,957			1,659,201			1,648,347		1,643,851		1,628,399
Securities (taxable)		629,322			653,292			661,947		644,336		660,937
Securities (non-taxable)		183,115			177,933			168,968		164,144		156,328
Total earning assets		2,535,187			2,503,004			2,494,913		2,467,655		2,458,422
Non earning assets		332,426			319,881			318,535		312,705		325,218
Non-interest bearing checking		379,679			357,515			370,843		357,246		348,466
Interest bearing NOW accounts		198,621			189,629			169,187		143,396		165,166
Total transaction accounts		578,300			547,144			540,030		500,642		513,631
Savings (including mortgage escrow funds)		371,499			364,763			342,412		348,670		380,749
Money market deposits		302,205			311,120			267,310		259,931		266,714
Certificates of deposit		539,269			545,413			561,935		581,204		585,115
Total deposits and mortgage escrow		1,791,273			1,768,440			1,711,687		1,690,447		1,746,209
Total interest bearing deposits		1,411,594			1,410,925			1,340,844		1,333,201		1,385,504
Borrowings		655,281			629,325			675,150		665,380		612,274
Equity		402,314			405,692			405,326		403,146		401,617
Other comprehensive income / (loss) (SFAS 115), reflected in stockholders’ equity		(5,892	)		(2,708	)		5,638		1,477		(3,917	)
Selected Operating Data:
Condensed Tax Equivalent Income Statement
Interest and dividend income	$	36,706		$	36,066		$	37,365	$	38,845	$	39,035
Tax equivalent adjustment*		951			929			918		880		832
Interest expense		11,169			11,878			14,124		16,471		16,792
Net interest income (tax equivalent)		26,488			25,117			24,159		23,254		23,075
Provision for loan losses		2,100			1,400			3,000		700		600
Net interest income after provision for loan losses		24,388			23,717			21,159		22,554		22,475
Non-interest income		5,306			5,024			5,753		4,959		4,918
Non-interest expense		19,499			18,955			18,924		18,122		19,045
Income before income tax expense		10,195			9,786			7,988		9,391		8,348
Income tax expense (tax equivalent)*		3,700			3,480			2,905		3,497		3,200
Net income	$	6,495		$	6,306		$	5,083	$	5,894	$	5,148

(1) Does not reflect allowance for loan losses of $23,101, $22,001, $21,413, $20,325 and $20,389

* Tax exempt income assumed at a 35% federal rate

Provident New York Bancorp Press Release cont. 13

	Three Months Ended
	09/30/08			06/30/08			03/31/08			12/31/07			09/30/07
Performance Ratios (annualized)
Return on Average Assets		0.90	%		0.90	%		0.73	%		0.84	%		0.73	%
Return on Average Equity		6.42	%		6.25	%		5.04	%		5.80	%		5.09	%
Non-Interest Income to Average Assets		0.74	%		0.72	%		0.82	%		0.71	%		0.70	%
Non-Interest Expense to Average Assets		2.71	%		2.70	%		2.71	%		2.59	%		2.71	%
Operating Efficiency		63.2	%		64.9	%		65.3	%		66.3	%		70.1	%
Analysis of Net Interest Income
Yield on:
Loans		6.25	%		6.30	%		6.63	%		7.00	%		7.18	%
Investment Securities- Tax Equivalent		5.19	%		5.18	%		5.19	%		5.12	%		4.94	%
Earning Assets- Tax Equivalent		5.91	%		5.94	%		6.17	%		6.39	%		6.43	%
Cost of:
Interest Bearing Deposits		1.54	%		1.76	%		2.34	%		2.66	%		2.68	%
Borrowings		3.47	%		3.64	%		3.78	%		4.50	%		4.76	%
Interest Bearing Liabilities		2.15	%		2.34	%		2.82	%		3.27	%		3.33	%
Net Interest Tax Equivalent:
Net Interest Rate Spread- Tax Equivalent Basis		3.76	%		3.60	%		3.35	%		3.12	%		3.10	%
Net Interest Margin- Tax Equivalent Basis		4.16	%		4.04	%		3.89	%		3.74	%		3.72	%
Capital Information Data
Tier 1 Leverage Ratio- Bank Only		8.01	%		8.32	%		8.14	%		8.22	%		8.07	%
Tier 1 Risk-Based Capital- Bank Only		226,054			223,391			215,420			215,920			212,497
Total Risk-Based Capital- Bank Only		249,155			245,392			236,833			236,245			232,886
Tangible Capital Consolidated		229,968			231,314			237,316			231,186			233,662
Tangible Capital as a % of Tangible Assets Consolidated		8.17	%		8.63	%		8.95	%		8.80	%		8.88	%
Shares Outstanding		39,815,213			39,839,335			40,086,491			40,125,457			41,230,618
Shares Repurchased during quarter		34,122			306,443			147,514			1,116,800			460,490
Basic weighted common shares outstanding		38,589,361			38,719,917			38,847,528			39,469,995			40,101,720
Diluted common shares outstanding		38,893,860			39,110,353			39,214,041			39,805,026			40,543,035
Per Common Share:
Basic Earnings	$	0.17		$	0.16		$	0.13		$	0.15		$	0.13
Diluted Earnings		0.17			0.16			0.13			0.15			0.13
Dividends Paid		0.06			0.06			0.06			0.06			0.05
Book Value		10.03			10.07			10.18			10.02			9.82
Tangible Book Value		5.78			5.81			5.92			5.76			5.67
Asset Quality Measurements
Non-performing loans (NPLs): non-accrual		13,589			9,595			9,014			6,053			3,509
Non-performing loans (NPLs): still accruing		3,289			4,647			4,536			3,317			3,749
Non-performing assets (NPAs)		16,962			14,380			13,688			9,507			7,397
Net Charge-offs		1,000			812			1,912			764			910
Net Charge-offs as % of average loans (annualized)		0.23	%		0.20	%		0.46	%		0.19	%		0.22	%
NPLs as % of total loans		0.97	%		0.84	%		0.82	%		0.57	%		0.44	%
NPAs as % of total assets		0.57	%		0.50	%		0.48	%		0.34	%		0.26	%
Allowance for loan losses as % of NPLs		137	%		154	%		158	%		217	%		281	%
Allowance for loan losses as % of total loans		1.33	%		1.30	%		1.29	%		1.23	%		1.26	%