Work Local, Bank Local: What Community Banks Mean for Small Businesses

If you’re a small business owner, access to financial resources, ease of money management, and having a trusted advisor are all essential parts of your business. At Origin Bank, our business banking team is dedicated to serving our community and their business leaders — no matter how large or small a local business may be.

Origin Bank is invested in the small business market and willing to spend time with our business banking customers to make sure we can provide exactly what they need. Local banks are a crucial resource for small businesses. Here are three reasons why.

Local banks provide crucial loans to small businesses. According to one recent study, bank loans are critical for small businesses; they allow business owners to maintain cash flow, hire new employees, purchase new inventory and equipment, and grow their business. Research shows that community banks receive most of their revenue from traditional banking activities such as loans. Simply put, community banks are invested in businesses.

Local banks support entrepreneurship. According to the FDIC, community banks are “relationship lenders, characterized by local ownership, local control, and local decision making… [they] have always been inextricably connected to entrepreneurships.” The same report notes that community banks only account for 14% of all banking industry assets, yet also cover 46% of the industry’s small loans to businesses and farms. Furthermore, the future of the business world may be closely tied to community banks, given that many millennials — the most entrepreneurial generation — say they desire a locally or family-owned bank that supports entrepreneurship.

Local banks support communities. Small businesses rely on lively communities to thrive, and community banks help support the customers and clients that local businesses need. The FDIC notes that community bank staffs are often involved in civic groups and local chambers of commerce. They are also likely to support local schools, assist with local relief efforts, and offer special help to low-income segments of the community, according to the report. For example, Origin Bank supported more than 500 local charities in 2015.

Wondering what we can do for your small business? Contact our team to learn more about how Origin supports local organizations.