Truliant Top Credit Union Lender for SBA

Credit unions generated less than 3% of SBA loans in the fiscal year that ended Sept. 30, but the biggest producer among them was Truliant Federal Credit Union of Winston-Salem, N.C.

The Small Business Administration (SBA) Lender Report showed Truliant ($5.3 billion in assets, 354,712 members at June 30) originated 66 loans worth $104.1 million in the 12 months ending Sept. 30. The report revealed Truliant’s production ranked No. 55 among all 1,464 banks, credit unions and other lenders in the fiscal year. Among the 167 credit unions, it ranked No. 1 for SBA 7(a) loans, the agency’s primary loan program for providing financial assistance to small businesses.

A news release from Truliant said Don Jackson, SVP of SBA lending, has focused on national production since he joined the credit union in 2020, “emphasizing controlled growth to maintain quality service.”

Jackson said Truliant has been expanding its Charlotte-based SBA team since the beginning of the year, developing a national team of dedicated business development officers with extensive experience structuring SBA loans for small businesses.

“This is a wonderful confirmation of Truliant’s SBA strategy,” Jackson said. “All of our key SBA pieces are now in place for Truliant to have even better results in the SBA lending space.”

Credit unions are an important source of SBA loans, which offer lower down payments and longer payment terms than traditional loans. Truliant’s SBA team guides business owners through the borrowing process, structuring customized loans to meet their needs. The team supports small business owners and aspiring entrepreneurs through owner-occupied commercial real estate lending, business acquisitions and partner buyouts up to $5 million.

Its average SBA loan was $1.6 million.

NCUA data pulled from Callahan’s Peer Suite showed Truliant’s SBA commercial loans grew 54% to $27.4 million in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 47% to $861.9 million.

The 167 credit unions originated 1,684 SBA loans worth $825.8 million, or 2.7% of the fiscal year’s $31.1 billion in SBA loans. NCUA data from Callahan’s Peer Suite showed SBA commercial loans grew 12% to $3.6 billion in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 11% to $167.2 billion.

More than two-thirds of production came from 12 credit unions, which each originated more than $20 million in SBA loans. They produced 769 loans worth $574.3 million, or 1.8% of the year’s SBA loans. Their SBA commercial loans grew 21% to $1.4 billion in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 22% to $11.0 billion.

The other 11 were:

1. Mountain America Federal Credit Union of Salt Lake City ($19.6 billion in assets, 1.3 million members), which originated 233 loans worth $90.2 million. Its SBA commercial loans grew 14.9% to $451.6 million in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 17.1% to $2.1 billion.

2. America First Federal Credit Union of Riverdale, Utah ($20.8 billion in assets, 1.4 million members), which originated 83 loans worth $88.6 million. Its SBA commercial loans grew 29.6% to $277.7 million in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 19.2% to $1.3 billion.

3. Everwise Credit Union of South Bend, Ind. ($5.2 billion in assets, 299,890 members), which originated 19 loans worth $44.4 million. Its SBA commercial loans grew 29.2% to $112.1 million in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 28% to $1.1 billion.

4. Idaho Central Credit Union of Chubbuck ($11.5 billion in assets, 638,670 members), which originated 54 loans worth $39.1 million. Its SBA commercial loans grew 14.7% to $99.1 million in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 19.8% to $1.2 billion.

5. Georgia’s Own Credit Union of Atlanta, ($4.2 billion in assets, 239,494 members), which originated 27 loans worth $38.5 million. Its SBA commercial loans grew 11.4% to $64.2 million in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 3.7% to $525.2 million.

6. GESA Credit Union of Richland, Wash. ($5.5 billion in assets, 290,486 members), which originated 47 loans worth $37.2 million. Its SBA commercial loans grew 22.8% to $24.5 million in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 23.8% to $862.2 million.

7. Lake Michigan Credit Union of Grand Rapids, Mich. ($14.3 billion in assets, 493,257 members), which originated 41 loans worth $31.9 million. Its SBA commercial loans grew 7.6% to $101.5 million in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 17.5% to $1.7 billion.

8. Telhio Credit Union of Columbus, Ohio ($1.4 billion in assets, 67,042 members), which originated 124 loans worth $28.8 million. Its SBA commercial loans grew 35.4% to $42.4 million in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 13.4% to $335.2 million.

9. DFCU Financial Credit Union of Dearborn, Mich. ($6.5 billion in assets, 242,365 members), which originated 30 loans worth $27.7 million. Its SBA commercial loans grew 35.3% to $145.4 million in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 55.2% to $694.3 million.

10. Financial Resources Federal Credit Union of Bridgewater, N.J. ($618 million in assets, 29,335 members), which originated 16 loans worth $23.5 million. Its SBA commercial loans grew 9.4% to $46.5 million in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 7.8% to $112.3 million.

11. iTHINK Financial Credit Union of Boca Raton, Fla. ($2.3 billion in assets, 109,857 members), which originated 29 loans worth $20.5 million. Its SBA commercial loans grew 18.6% to $13.5 million in the 12 months ending June 30, while total commercial loans grew 1.9% to $143.6 million.