"Interestingly, koi, when put in a fish bowl, will only grow up to three inches. When this same fish is placed in a large tank, it will grow to about nine inches long. In a pond koi can reach lengths of eighteen inches. Amazingly, when placed in a lake, koi can grow to three feet long. The metaphor is obvious. You are limited by how you see the world."
-- Vince Poscente

Showing posts with label business bankers. Show all posts
Showing posts with label business bankers. Show all posts

Tuesday, November 15, 2011

Check out A 'Match.com' fr entrepreneurs and lenders from crainsnewyorkbusiness.com

crain's new york business.com
By: Elaine Pofeldt
October 18, 2011

BoeFly aims to aid businesses disappointed by their banks, but there's new competition in this financial services niche.

The Company: BoeFly
What it Does: It's an online marketplace matching small business borrowers with lenders around the country.
How's It Doing: Founded in 2010 by two finance industry veterans, the Manhattan-based site is generating nearly $150,000 in revenue a month. It has raised $4 million from private investors. The founders expect it to become profitable in 2012.

To learn more about BoeFly... read the full article... click here.

Friday, June 25, 2010

The SBA Has a Deal for You

It's called a 504 loan. Here's what you need to know about it.
By Marshall Eckblad
Wall Street Journal: Small Business Online
June 21, 2010

The government is trying to entice more small businesses to tap one of its loan programs. Before applying for one of these loans, though, there are some fine points borrowers should consider.

The Small Business Administration's 504 loan program lets companies take out fixed-rate financing to buy property, build or expand facilities, or refinance some existing mortgages. The borrower typically needs to put down just 10% of the transaction's total price.

With the weak economy deterring many small businesses from expanding in the past couple of years, demand for these loans plummeted: Last year, the SBA approved $3.8 billion in 504 loans, down 28% from 2008 and 40% from 2007. Hoping to spur expansion among small companies, the SBA is offering inducements like lower rates and no-fee deals.

To read more... click here.

Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Three Best Ways to Court a Community Bank

By EMILY MALTBY
Wall Street Journal, WSJ.com

Discouraged by big-bank practices and bureaucratic procedures, many Main Street firms have "gone local" with their lenders. Community banks are often more willing than their larger counterparts to conduct business on a handshake because they understand the needs of their neighboring establishments and, in many cases, have underwriters in-house to approve loans.

In exchange, however, those lenders expect more from their borrowers. "It's like that old saying, dig a well before you are thirsty," says Brian Carlson, president of Excel National Bank, a standalone lender in Beverly Hills. "It can take some time before [a banker] says, 'I know this guy and I'm confident he'll do what he says he'll do.' Having that relationship is valuable because if you need $300,000 by the end of the week to take advantage of an opportunity, the bank will jump to get it done."

Here are the three best ways to develop a relationship with a community lender:

To read more... click here.

Monday, May 24, 2010

U.S. Banks Post Profits, but Woes Persist

Sherpa--This might be a clue as to why credit is so tight.

By MICHAEL R. CRITTENDEN
Wall Street Journal, WSJ.com

WASHINGTON—A total of 775 banks, or one-tenth of all U.S. banks, were on the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s list of "problem" institutions in the first quarter, as bad loans in the commercial real-estate market weighed on bank balance sheets.
Poor loan performance in other sectors also continued to hurt banks, with the total number of loans at least three months past due climbing for the 16th consecutive quarter, FDIC officials said in a briefing on Thursday.
"The banking system still has many problems to work through, and we cannot ignore the possibility of more financial market volatility," FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair said.
There were 702 on the FDIC's "problem" bank list at the end of 2009 and 252 at the end of 2008.
FDIC officials said they expected the number of failed banks to peak this year after climbing steadily over the past three years. Regulators have shut 72 banks so far this year, more than double the number closed by this time last year. Ms. Bair said regulators were preparing for a steady pace of additional closures through the end of the year. A total of 237 banks have failed since the beginning of 2008.
The failures continue to strain the FDIC's fund to protect consumer deposits, although officials signaled they were confident they had enough cash on hand to deal with the expected spate of failures, without having to assess new fees on the banking industry. The agency's deposit insurance fund stood at negative-$20.7 billion at the end of the first quarter, a slight improvement from the end of 2009.
"We have the necessary industry-funded resources to complete the cleanup," Ms. Bair said, in a reference to the fees that the agency assesses on banks for insuring their deposits.
Banks, squeezed by problem loans and the continued recession, responded by reducing their lending. The industry's total loan balances grew by 3% during the quarter, but the increase was due to accounting changes that required banks to bring securitized assets back onto their balance sheets. Without taking into account these accounting changes, lending would have declined for the seventh straight quarter, as banks cut back across most major lending categories.

To read the full article …click here.

Saturday, May 1, 2010

End Of an Era... Paul Paquette

One of my favorite bankers is leaving the profession to follow a different career path. Paul Paquette at Wells Fargo has been one of the area's top SBA lenders. Paul has been known for his diligence, hard work and professionalism. I liked working with Paul as he was quick to give a "yes" or "no" on a deal, and if it was a "yes" he worked hard to close the loan. In addition he was always patient with my "lobbying" about the merits of a transaction. Good luck Paul in your new career!!!!

Son Isaac on Camel in Tangiers

Son Isaac on Camel in Tangiers
"Sometimes your only available transportation is a leap of faith."-- Margaret Shepard