Florida credit unions are funding business loans and filling the gap left by commercial banks
Case In Point
John DeNucci finally got the loan he needed to build his Fernandina Beach ice cream shop from what he thought an unlikely source – a credit union. “I never would have thought of going to a credit union,” DeNucci said. “I had no idea that a credit union could be better able to give us a loan.”
He discovered this new funding source after spending six months contacting at least 20 financial institutions that turned him down.
Florida credit unions that offer business financing
Florida credit unions that offer business financing, which can include SBA-insured loans, include one of Florida’s largest credit unions, namely, 1-2-1 Financial Credit Union with $432 million in assets.
1-2-1 Financial, for instance, offers commercial loans from $10,000 to about $1.5 million. David Marovich, their business account officer, said commercial lending at 1-2-1 Financial Credit Union has increased each year for the past five years, rising 19 percent in 2010 alone. The credit union is aggressively seeking new commercial borrowers in 2011 too, and Marovich expects double-digit growth this year as well.
Florida’s other largest credit unions also offer business loans, namely, VyStar Credit Union with $4.1 billion in assets, and Community First Credit Union of Florida with $1.1 billion in assets.
Many of the new commercial loans these credit unions have made were the result of a business owner being turned down at banks.
VyStar, which offers commercial loans up to $8 million, has experienced a large increase in the number of businesses refinancing loans that had originated at banks.
John Hirabayashi, president and CEO of Community First Credit Union, said the number of small-business owners with business accounts at the credit union has also been on the rise during the recession.
“It’s never just one account, it’s usually multiple accounts,” Hirabayashi said. “It has a relationship effect that spreads to personal accounts, too.”
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Source: http://www.bizjournals.com/jacksonville/print-edition/2011/01/14/credit-unions-fill-business-loan-void.html
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