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Weekly UpdatesFOR THE SECOND STRAIGHT year, lending guaranteed by the U.S. Small Business Administration took a hit in Arkansas.
Lenders and the SBA made 341 separate loans totaling $105.1 million in Arkansas during fiscal 2008, which ended Sept. 30. That total included 303 loans totaling $72.7 million under the SBA's 7(a) program and 38 loans totaling $32.4 million in the 504 program.
The 7(a) loans are provided by third-party lenders with an SBA guarantee on portions of the loan, while the 504 program provides long-term, fixed-rate financing for major fixed assets such as land and buildings.
The comparison with fiscal 2007 is stark. In that year, 538 loans totaling $126.1 million. But even those figures were significantly below fiscal 2006, when lenders made 603 SBA loans in Arkansas worth a total of almost $131.2 million.
The list below is ranked by total value of loans, and in those terms, Arkansas Capital Corp. Group of Little Rock is still untouchable. Arkansas Capital Corp. made 25 of the 7(a) loans valued at $10.1 million and its sister company, Six Bridges Capital Corp., made 32 loans valued at $26.6 million under the 504 program.
The 504 loans are made in conjunction with commercial banks. West Central Arkansas Planning & Development District of Hot Springs, which is exclusively in the business of 504 lending, actually increased its number of loans last year to six worth $5.85 million.
Notable is the absence of ANB Financial of Bentonville, which was No. 2 on the list in 2008 of top SBA lenders. The bank was closed in May 2008.
Fiscal 2009 SBA lending may be boosted if business in the state takes advantage of two new programs.
On June 15, the SBA began accepting applications for a temporary program called America's Recovery Capital. ARC loans of up to $35,000 are "designed to provide a 'bridge' for viable small businesses with immediate financial hardship--to keep their doors open until they get back on track," the SBA said.
And as of July 1, auto, RV and other dealerships can apply for SBA-guaranteed floor plan financing--that is, a revolving line of credit secured by inventory.
The dealer floor plan pilot program will run through Sept. 30, 2010, after which SBA will decide whether to keep it. Floor plan loans will be available for a minimum of $500,000 up to the $2 million allowable under the 7(a) program.
By Gwen Moritz
gmoritz@abpg.com
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