"We have years of experience with SBA lending through the partnership with Capital Growth," Burroughs said. She explained the company chose Capital to reassure credit unions that are looking to offer SBA-guaranteed loans but fear their complexity might lead them to inadvertently void the guarantee.

Under the SBA's 7(a) loan program, lenders take on the risk for 25% of the loan amount and the agency guarantees the other 75%, as long as the lender makes the loan according to agency specifications, Burroughs explained. However, if a loan defaults and the agency discovers the lender didn't follow the loan's guidelines, the agency could refuse to reimburse all or part of the guaranteed amount.

While LEVERAGE would not guarantee reimbursement from the SBA on any defaulted loan a credit union made with the firm's help, Burroughs said due to the company's ample SBA loan experience, a credit union's chances of receiving full reimbursement will be much greater.

"When starting an SBA lending program, credit unions generally have to invest hundreds of thousands of dollars just to get it off the ground," LEVERAGE President/CEO Patrick La Pine said. "Small businesses have an unmet need right now when it comes to capital for their operations. Credit unions can fill this gap. LEVERAGE Business Lending does all the heavy lifting so credit unions can focus on their members and helping their small businesses thrive."

Burroughs said LEVERAGE Business Lending will be open to all credit unions regardless of asset size, but participating credit unions will be required to underwrite for credit worthiness and have the necessary capacity in their core processing systems to originate SBA-guaranteed loans.