March 21, 2025 Bob ColemanFounder & Publisher Credit Union CEO Indicted for Loan Fraud Leading to Richmond City FCU’s Failure Richmond City Employees Federal Credit Union, a small credit union with 788 members in Richmond, Indiana, was closed by federal regulators in December 2022. The $8 million credit union reported a $500,000 loss for the…

March 20, 2025 Bob ColemanFounder & Publisher SmartBiz Acquires Centrust Bank Founded in 2006, the Chicago-based Centrust Bank primarily focused on business lending to small and medium-sized businesses, offering both conventional and SBA loan products. In FY24, Centrust approved 16 SBA 7(a) loans totaling $22.4 million, ranking 198th nationwide. The entire Centrust team has joined…

March 19, 2025 Bob ColemanFounder & Publisher Adhere to the “Spirit of the SBA” in Taking Residences for “All Available Collateral”  In a recent Coleman webinar moderated by Leslie Tripp, the Doeren Mayhew portfolio review team discussed SBA 7(a) loan compliance exceptions they had found in lender portfolios. One exception was particularly noteworthy. The lender…

March 18, 2025 Bob ColemanFounder & Publisher SBA Hot Topic Tuesday — US Citizenship Documentation by Lance SextonPhoenix Lender Services In response to the SBA policy updates to comply with Executive Order 14159 regarding citizenship requirements for obtaining 7(a) and 504 loans following is a best practice you may wish to use. Basics: An applicant…

March 17, 2025 Bob ColemanFounder & Publisher Main Street Monday — B of A Says Main Street Use of Credit Cards for Financing Decreasing  “However, in our view, pressure on credit card usage might ease as credit availability improves and interest rates fall. Additionally, loan payment growth, after being largely negative the past year, is…

March 14, 2025 Bob ColemanFounder & Publisher Fraud Friday — Michigan CPA Pleads Guilty for 226 SBA PPP Loan Fraud Applications Matthew Parker, a licensed CPA from Detroit, Michigan, conspired to defraud lenders of over $14 million in PPP COVID-19 relief loans and plead guilty to one count of loan fraud. Matthew recruited hundreds of…

March 13, 2025 Bob ColemanFounder & Publisher Robert Nelson Retires, Carlos Torres Jr. Joins First Internet Bank, Harvest Hires Mark Langdon Carlos Torres Jr. Joins First Internet Bank as Vice President, Senior Business Development Officer “The SBA experience Carlos has is an asset to our team and our clients,” says First Internet Bank Vice President,…

March 12, 2025 Bob ColemanFounder & Publisher House Small Business SubCommittee Holds a Hearing of the Importance of SBA Staff in the Field The following questions were posed to Missouri State SBDC Director Ted Gutierrez (pictured right) about moving staff out of Washington, D.C. to the states and streamlining SBA lending programs: Chairman Alford: Can…

March 11, 2025 Bob ColemanFounder & Publisher SBA Hot Topic Tuesday — SBA Announces Made in America Initiative “The great American comeback starts with restoring American industry,” says SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler.  “With the Made in America Manufacturing Initiative, we’re slashing red tape, expanding access to capital, and fueling a manufacturing resurgence that will create…