Centier Bank awarded Bank of the Year by the Regional Development Company

Centier Bank awarded Bank of the Year by the Regional Development Company

The Regional Development Company (RDC) recently held its annual awards ceremony, and Centier Bank was named Bank of the Year for its efforts in community business lending. Centier Bank referred 15 loans totaling $11,615,000 in debenture dollars.   

Additionally, three Centier Bank Business Bankers were recognized at the ceremony. Tim Spoelman was named “Lender of the Year,” for referring $4,245,000 in SBA loan dollars, as well as three loans to the RDC. Greg Gottschalk also referred three loans to the RDC. Spoelman, Gottschalk, and Tim Warner were also inducted into the Millionaire’s Club, which is reserved for lenders who have referred loans for $1 million or more.

Spoelman said The Regional Development Company and the Small Business Association 504 Loan Program have proven to be excellent partners even in a very challenging year filled with uncertainty, economic unease, and new threats to the economy like no other. 

“The RDC was proactive in working with us to provide assistance to our borrowers negatively impacted by COVID-19, and we are very grateful for their expertise and hard work over the past year,” Spoelman said. “We look forward to many, many more years of working with the RDC and doing our part in providing much needed capital to entrepreneurs, investors, and small businesses in our market.” 

The Valparaiso-based nonprofit is a Certified Development Company that administers the U.S. Small Business Administration’s 504 Loan Program for small business growth. The RDC partners with local financial institutions to provide business financing for large capital projects in the states of Indiana, Illinois and Michigan. The RDC had 36 loan approvals for $21 million debenture dollars, which equates into $66 million in total project dollars.  Seven of the businesses are minority-owned, six are rural, and seven are women-owned businesses.

Gottschalk said through the SBA 504 program, Centier and the RDC were able to assist business owners in securing financing with a long term fixed rate, allowing the businesses to maintain capital and deploy it back into their operations to support growth opportunities. 

“For a community bank like Centier that focuses on partnering with locally-owned businesses, it’s nice for both myself and bank clients to communicate with SBA representatives that live and work in those same communities,” Gottschalk said.

Erica Dombey, President & Executive Director of the RDC, said over the last 25 years, Centier Bank has been a strong supporter of the organization and the 504 Loan Program.  

“We look forward to continuing this great relationship with Centier for many years to come,” Dombey said.

For more information about the Regional Development Company’s Annual Awards, and to see videos from the winners, click here. For more information about Centier Bank, go to centier.com.