This year brought some changes, as noted by Michael Roche , president of Heller Small Business Finance. More banks were involved in SBA lending, and a few regional banks have gotten far more committed to it this year than they were historically. One thing that's different for us than for some of our competitors is that Heller has five core businesses, and this is one of them. It's certainly nice frosting on the cake, but that wasn't what we were after.
Some lenders do emphasize the number of loans originated.
But the generally accepted view, as expressed by one bank vice president, is that what matters most in the end to an institution is the amount of money it makes through loans. We've been very strong out West. We've expanded into the Midwest, Southeast and the Northeast. Heller's small-business unit operates 35 loan production offices, eight of which have opened in the past 12 months. In addition, it has expanded within its existing markets.