I, the Chief Executive Officer of Sterling Bancorp, a New York corporation (the “Company”), certify, based on my knowledge, that:

(i)

The Compensation Committee of the Company (the “Compensation Committee”) has discussed, reviewed, and evaluated with senior risk officers at least every six months during the period beginning on September 14, 2009 and ending on December 31, 2010 (the “Applicable Period”), the senior executive officer (“SEO”) compensation plans and the employee compensation plans and the risks these plans pose to the Company;

(ii)

The Compensation Committee has identified and limited during the Applicable Period any features of the SEO compensation plans that could lead SEOs to take unnecessary and excessive risks that could threaten the value of the Company, and during that same Applicable Period has identified any features of the employee compensation plans that pose risks to the Company and has limited those features to ensure that the Company is not unnecessarily exposed to risks;

(iii)

The Compensation Committee has reviewed, at least every six months during the Applicable Period, the terms of each employee compensation plan and identified any features of the plan that could encourage the manipulation of reported earnings of the Company to enhance the compensation of an employee, and has limited any such features;

(iv)

The Compensation Committee will certify to the reviews of the SEO compensation plans and employee compensation plans required under (i) and (iii) above;

(v)

The Compensation Committee will provide a narrative description of how it limited during any part of 2010 the features in

(A)

SEO compensation plans that could lead SEOs to take unnecessary and excessive risks that could threaten the value of the Company;

(B)

Employee compensation plans that unnecessarily expose the Company to risks; and

(C)

Employee compensation plans that could encourage the manipulation of reported earnings of the Company to enhance the compensation of an employee;

(vi)

The Company has required that bonus payments, as defined in the regulations and guidance established under section 111 (“bonus payments”) of the Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008, as amended (“EESA”), of the SEOs and twenty next most highly compensated employees be subject to a recovery or “clawback” provision during the period beginning on June 15, 2009 and ending on December 31, 2010 if the bonus payments were based on materially inaccurate financial statements or any other materially inaccurate performance metric criteria;

(vii)

The Company has prohibited any golden parachute payment, as defined in the regulations and guidance established under section 111 of EESA, to a SEO or any of the next five most highly compensated employees during the period beginning on June 15, 2009 and ending on December 31, 2010;

(viii)

The Company has limited bonus payments to its applicable employees in accordance with section 111 of EESA and the regulations and guidance established thereunder during the period beginning on June 15, 2009 and ending on December 31, 2010;

(ix)

The Board of Directors of the Company (the “Board”) has established an excessive or luxury expenditures policy, as defined in the regulations and guidance established under section 111 of EESA, by September 14, 2009; this policy has been provided to the United States Department of Treasury (the “U.S. Treasury”) and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System; the Company and its employees have complied with this policy during the Applicable Period; and any expenses that, pursuant to this policy, required approval of the Board, a committee of the Board, an SEO, or an executive officer with a similar level of responsibility were properly approved;

(x)

The Company will permit a non-binding shareholder resolution in compliance with any applicable federal securities rules and regulations on the disclosures provided under the federal securities laws related to SEO compensation paid or accrued during the period beginning on June 15, 2009 and ending on December 31, 2010;

(xi)

The Company will disclose the amount, nature, and justification for the offering during the period beginning on June 15, 2009 and ending on December 31, 2010 of any perquisites, as defined in the regulations and guidance established under section 111 of EESA, whose total value exceeds $25,000 for any employee who is subject to the bonus payment limitations identified in paragraph (viii);