BANKING/FINANCE

Business Loans: Liberty National Bank in Huntington Beach was the nation’s 10th-largest provider of business loans backed by the Small Business Administration during the government’s fiscal year, which ended Sept. 30.

The small bank, with assets of $132.6 million, provided $24.5 million in SBA-guaranteed loans to small companies.

Providing loans to small business helps them grow, creates new jobs, increases the general tax base and helps firms bring their products and services to the marketplace, said Liberty President Philip S. Inglee.

“It’s taken us seven years to reach the top 10,” he said. “We’ve been slowly moving up the ladder.”