Cecil Bancorp, Inc.

Cecil Bancorp, Inc. is another of those bank holding names that tell you the shape of the business before they tell you anything else. By our assessment, that usually means conservative lending, deposit gathering, and a local or regional customer base rather than a broad consumer presence. The strength of this kind of company is clarity: it is easy to understand what the institution does and where its money comes from. The limit is just as clear, because a narrower banking footprint leaves less room to spread risk or look distinctive. In practice, this is the sort of company that matters most to people following community banking and least to anyone looking for a widely visible brand. Cecil Bancorp, Inc. belongs to a crowded field, and it reads as a straightforward banking vehicle rather than a name with a big public personality.