SBA’s Regional Office Leads the U.S. in Lending

The Small Business Administration’s Los Angeles district office once again led the nation in small-business lending, approving 2,606 loans totaling $753.1 million in fiscal 1999.

It is the fourth straight year in which the L.A. district--which includes Los Angeles, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties--has led the agency in both number of loans and dollar volume. In fiscal 1998, the L.A. office approved 2,655 loans totaling $688.7 million.

Nationwide, the SBA set records in its major financing programs for the fiscal year ended Sept. 30. Loans and venture capital financing nationwide topped $16.3 billion. The SBA approved 43,639 loan guarantees in its most popular program, the 7(a) General Business Loan Guarantee, totaling nearly $10.2 billion, 12.5% more than the previous year.

A record 28% of all SBA loan dollars, or about $3.4 billion, went to minority borrowers. The agency also made a record $1.9 billion in loans to firms owned by women.