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Charleston welcomes new bank; familiar faces at the helm
By Dan McCue
Staff Writer
Walk into the newest bank in town and you’re likely to be greeted by a familiar face.
Two years after the Wachovia Corp.’s merger with SouthTrust Bank resulted in two people for every seat in the executive boardroom, Charles F. Rivers III, the former CEO of SouthTrust’s Charleston operation, is back in the commercial banking business.
On March 15, he and several former local SouthTrust executives officially opened the Harbor National Bank, a new financial enterprise, at two area locations, 134 Meeting St. downtown and on Old Towne Road in West Ashley.
“As in the case of any merger, there came a point when Wachovia had to look at the market and where there might be overlap, and they had to let people go,” said Rivers. “They said, ‘Obviously, we don’t need two CEOs in Charleston,’ and they let me go.”
Like anyone might do in his position, Rivers took a few weeks off to do some soul searching and then began to look at his options.
“A number of banks were interested in entering the Charleston market, but when I looked at the options that were out there, I kept coming back to the same conclusion: If I was going to get involved in starting up a bank here, why not start my own with local investors, local leadership and local connections?” he said.
Rivers, Harbor National’s president and CEO, has been a fixture in Charleston banking for more than 30 years and helped create SouthTrust in the mid-1980s, “literally from scratch,” he said.
The knowledge he acquired during that startup proved to be the foundation of Harbor National’s entry into the competitive Charleston market.
“When you set out to start a bank, the first thing you have to decide is what kind of bank you want to be,” he said. “We decided we wanted to be a nationally-chartered bank because of the prestige that designation lends a financial institution. We’re FDIC insured and a member of the Federal Reserve system.”
While wending its way though the application and regulatory process, Harbor National also completed a private placement of $29.5 million in stock, the highest amount ever by a startup community bank in Charleston and the second highest amount ever raised in South Carolina.
The majority of funds came from Charleston investors, Rivers said.
“We made the private offering through contacts of our bank officers and board of directors,” he explained. “That’s the standard way to do these things.”
Each of the stockholders is expected to hold onto the investment for at least two to three years.
Rivers described Harbor National’s board of directors as successful business people with extensive contacts and roots in the Charleston region. Like Rivers, most of the bank’s principals are also SouthTrust veterans.
“The key difference between independent community banks like ours and the big regional players is our decision-making is made right here, locally,” Rivers said. “Our board of directors lives here, works here, and that’s a key difference.
“The bigger the player, as good a bank as they may be, the more they have to be concerned with what transpires in other places,” he continued. “I think we understand Charleston and what makes it unique, and I think having local authority also allows you to be more flexible.
“The other thing is it affords the customer the opportunity of talking to the decision-maker,” Rivers added. “I’ll be in both branches for part of every day, so when you want to talk to the bank president, you can.”
The bank will offer a host of traditional community bank services, including individual savings and checking accounts, certificates of deposits, home equity loans and mortgages, and business and commercial lending.
“We’re a full-service commercial bank and particularly interested in serving small to medium-sized businesses,” he said.
The decision to have a branch downtown and another in West Ashley came easily, Rivers said.
“Having worked downtown for so long, I knew we needed a presence there,” he said. “Not only is our Meeting Street office in the heart of the business district and close to county and city offices, but it’s literally right around the corner from where most of us used to work and close to the contacts we made over the years.
“I also had an office in West Ashley for many years and readily recognized the household and business opportunities in this community,” Rivers said. “In addition, we’ve seen several other businesses open or relocate here, so that in itself is a validation of this as a good location.”
The bank has also adopted “Yes!” as its official slogan. Rivers likes it because he thinks it is the purest statement the bank could have of its philosophical intent, he said.
“It says, ‘Yes, we want to be your banker.’ ‘Yes, we want you to consider us when you need a loan.’ And while you obviously, can’t say yes to every one who seeks a loan, you can say, ‘Yes, I will sit down with you, discuss your situation and give you an answer quickly,’” he explained.
Dan McCue is a staff writer for the Business Journal. E-mail him at dmccue@charlestonbusiness.com.
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