Bank Enters Greater Fredericksburg with the Addition of Jeff Rouse and Lee Pugh
After decades of banking mergers, a bold Virginia banking stalwart expands commercial services to Stafford County and the Fredericksburg Region.
Stafford, VA – Burke & Herbert Bank announced today that Jeff Rouse and Lee Pugh — two veteran commercial bankers with significant experience in the greater Fredericksburg, Virginia market — have joined the Bank as Commercial Relationship Managers. Mr. Rouse and Mr. Pugh will be responsible for developing and managing new commercial customer relationships in greater Fredericksburg, a new market for the Bank. Gregory Mellors, also a Fredericksburg market veteran, joined Burke & Herbert Bank last month to oversee the Bank’s commercial and industrial (C&I) lending program and lead the Bank’s work to enhance and expand its C&I business. With the addition of Jeff and Lee to the team, the Bank will extend its reach beyond the northern Virginia/greater Washington market for the first time.
“I am thrilled that Jeff and Lee have agreed to join us here at Burke & Herbert Bank,” stated Commercial Banking Senior Vice President, Greg Mellors. “Jeff and Lee are top-notch commercial bankers with the skills, experience, and market expertise required to help us get our commercial business off the ground successfully in the greater Fredericksburg market,” he added.
“We are excited about moving ahead with our commercial banking expansion strategy and delighted that we now have the team we need to serve commercial customers in Fredericksburg and surrounding areas,” noted David P. Boyle, the Bank’s President & Chief Executive Officer. “Having a team of highly-experienced bankers who know the market has been key to our long history of success in northern Virginia, and will be key to our success in this new market as well. We are very fortunate to have such first-rate relationship bankers as Jeff and Lee working with Greg to grow our commercial program,” he added.
Mr. Rouse brings over twenty-five years of banking and business development experience to his new role at Burke & Herbert Bank. Most recently, he served as Market President and Principal Relationship Manager in the Fredericksburg region for Wells Fargo Bank. Prior experience includes leadership roles at Rappahannock Economic Development Corporation in Fredericksburg, MedExpert International, Inc. in Redwood City, California and Arlington, Virginia, and Stafford County Department of Economic Development in Stafford, Virginia. Jeff is an active participant in a number of local organizations, currently serving as Board Chairman for the Rappahannock Area YMCA among other Board of Director and Board of Advisor roles. He is a Stanford University graduate and an Olympic gold and silver medalist as a member of the U.S. National Swimming Team. The Jeff Rouse Swim & Sport Center in Stafford, Virginia is named in his honor.
Mr. Pugh has more than thirty years of experience in the financial services industry, most recently serving as Senior Vice President and Commercial Banker for First Citizens Bank in Fredericksburg, Virginia. He led the Bank’s launch into the Fredericksburg market and developed and managed the local market team for the past sixteen years. Prior to his work at First Citizens Bank, Mr. Pugh gained valuable experience in business and commercial banking roles at Royal Bank of Canada/Centura Bank and Bank of Granite. Lee is active in the local community, working with a number of non-profit organizations and currently serving as the treasurer for Friends of the Rappahannock. He is a graduate of Lenior Rhyne College in Hickory, North Carolina and Louisiana State University, Graduate School of Banking in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
Burke & Herbert Bank is the oldest bank in the Commonwealth of Virginia and the oldest continuously operating bank in the Washington, DC area. The Bank offers a full range of personal and business banking products and services designed to meet customers’ banking, borrowing, and investing needs. Burke & Herbert Bank is headquartered in Alexandria and operates more than 20 branches in northern Virginia.
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