The U.S. Small Business Administration released its SBA 7(a) lender rankings for fiscal year ending September 30, 2021. First Chatham Bank, headquartered in Savannah, GA, is 45^th on the list of 1,738 lenders who closed SBA 7(a) loans in FY’21. This puts First Chatham Bank in the top 2.6% of SBA 7(a) lenders nationwide.

In FY ’21, the SBA approved 119 loans from First Chatham Bank totaling $179,270,200 in SBA 7(a) loan volume. That puts First Chatham’s average SBA 7(a) loan size at $1.5 million. In the state of Georgia, First Chatham Bank ranks as the fourth largest SBA 7(a) lender for FY ’21.

“Early this year, we responded to the marketplace’s strong demand for SBA loans by launching Chatham Business Capital, a new nationwide SBA lending Division of First Chatham Bank,” said Ken Farrell, President & CEO of First Chatham Bank. “Becoming a top 50 SBA 7(a) lender in our first year of operation is an astounding achievement that speaks not only to the marketplace’s demand, but also to the caliber of talent on the team we recruited to build our SBA Division,” said Farrell.

“Launching and leading First Chatham’s new SBA Division has been a wild ride,” said George Vredeveld, Executive Director of Chatham Business Capital. “It was never, and will never be, our goal to become the largest SBA lender in the country, but it is very much our goal to be the best SBA lender in the country. Customers return to us and refer us to other business owners based on our consultative approach, creative loan structures and extraordinary customer service. That’s where our focus will remain,” said Vredeveld.

“SBA lending is a critical part of our nation’s economy,” said Farrell. “First Chatham Bank is pleased to be playing a significant role as a top 50 SBA lender. We look forward to remaining a key player as we meet the financing needs of small business owners both locally, and now also, around the country,” said Farrell.

“Our Chatham Business Capital tagline says it all: Think bigger. In the marketplace, we help small business owners think bigger about what’s possible for their growth and success. Internally, we encourage employees to think bigger about their contributions, aspirations and career trajectories. As a top 50 lender, “thinking bigger” will continue to be our guiding principle,” said Vredeveld.