Jack Hollerbach wants to bring Maryland banking back home.

The president and CEO of HarVest Bank of Maryland said a move to Frederick emphasizes the strength of local banks. HarVest Bank of Maryland will take over the office of Graystone Bank at 37 N. Market St., Hollerbach said, most likely in mid-August, pending review by state and federal banking agencies.

"I think it is neat to see a Maryland bank taking over a branch of a Pennsylvania bank," Hollerbach said, noting the takeover by PNC of the Mercantile.

"I hope people will refer to us by the full name and not just HarVest Bank, because it is very important to us to be seen as a Maryland bank," Hollerbach said.

The bank opened three years ago in Rockville and now has offices in Bethesda and Germantown. Frederick is part of the second of what Hollerbach calls a three-stage plan to open 10 branches during the next several years. The bank has more than $200 million in assets. The Frederick office will add an estimated $10 million to $12 million to its portfolio.

The seven employees at the Frederick office will become part of the HarVest Bank of Maryland team, Hollerbach said. "They will be the very visible part of our team," he said.

Keeping money in the community is a paramount issue for the bank, Hollerbach said. "We donate money to charities and organizations that our team members are involved in. We don't just write a check," he said.

The bank takes "well-measured risks," Hollerbach said, and is not publicly traded. There are 240 shareholders and the bank "doesn't charge a lot of fees to pay bonuses to someone out of town," referring to large out-of-state banks.

"We are an alternative to those out-of-state-banks. We want to see homegrown banks along the I-270 corridor," Hollerbach said. "We focus on community development."

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