Experts Bank on Community Institutions for Small to Mid-Sized Businesses

However, small and mid-sized businesses do much better at community banks, according to the watchdogs of commercial banking. One such community bank that fits this description is Unity Bank.

Unity Bank is a mid-sized community institution with 16 branches. It's President, James Hughes, says Unity is representative of a regional bank in that its services are focused on helping area businesses grow and thrive. "As do many banks our size throughout the country, we provide a combination of critical business services and small business loans," says Hughes. "Of course, we strive to do it better than most."

Founded in 1991, Unity Bank has been designated a Preferred Lender by the Small Business Administration, based on its lending track record. It offers a one-stop suite of services to area business, and has set up what the bank calls its Small Business Capital Group to address the specific needs of their commercial customers. "We're dedicated to helping local businesses stay healthy and maintain profitability," says Hughes, "and that goes beyond everyday banking services. We develop personal relationships with our customers, and everything we do on their behalf takes into consideration the welfare of the community as a whole. That's not the way the international banking institutions think. They're just not built to operate that way."

Each business customer at Unity Bank is assigned a Relationship Manager, as well as a loan officer, according to Hughes. "It's their job to help our customers anticipate their banking needs by providing an outside perspective on how local trends and outside influences may affect their businesses."

Unity Bank began as First Community Bank in 1991 with two branches and thirty employees. It now employs over one hundred and sixty men and women in Hunterdon, Middlesex, Somerset, Union and Warren counties in New Jersey, and Northampton County in Pennsylvania.

Media Contact:
Patricia Sharkey
Delia Associates
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