Global Impact: Regions Bank Receives 2023 SBA Export Lender of the Year

The U.S. Small Business Administration honors Regions Bank for helping small-business owners introduce their products to the global marketplace.

BIRMINGHAM, Ala.–(BUSINESS WIRE)–
Regions Bank on Tuesday announced it has received the U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) 2023 Export Lender of the Year Award.

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Ronnie Smith, head of Regions Corporate Banking group, received the 2023 SBA Export Lender of the Year Award. Those pictured include (L to R) Carson Strickland, head of Regions Global Trade Finance; Caroline Taylor, head of Regions Small Business Administration Lending; Ronnie Smith; Gabriel Esparza, SBA associate administrator for the Office of International Trade; Daniel Pische, SBA national director of Trade Finance. (Photo: Business Wire)

In 2022, Regions facilitated more than $36 million in financing for small-business exporters by leveraging the SBA’s Export Working Capital Program (EWCP) and International Trade Loan Program (ITLP). Through new working capital loans in 2022, Regions maintained the largest active EWCP portfolio in the U.S. Together, the EWCP and ITLP empower entrepreneurs through two key advantages.

1. The EWCP makes it possible for small-business owners to use a revolving line of credit in advance of finalizing an export sale or contract. The result is greater flexibility in negotiating export payment terms.

2. The ITLP provides term loan financing to help small businesses enter international markets and make new investments to export goods.

“Regions Bank is deeply committed to the success of small businesses,” said Caroline Taylor, head of Small Business Administration Lending for Regions Bank. “Our approach begins with the experience and insights of bankers who take the time to listen to clients – and then develop customized solutions to help turn the client’s vision into reality. A key part of our success is our Global Trade team that works in collaboration with the SBA, leveraging options such as the SBA’s export programs to connect entrepreneurs, quite literally, to a world of new opportunities. As a result, we’re helping small businesses gain a global reach while building lasting, sustainable success in the communities where they are based. Regions Bank is honored to be recognized as Export Lender of the Year. And the greatest honor is seeing clients achieve and even surpass their goals for growth.”

Regions is a preferred SBA lender and makes final credit decisions on SBA-guaranteed loans, cutting down the length of time needed to process transactions. Regions also provides a diverse suite of global trade finance options. Resources include:

• Performance Solutions: These options are designed to helpdevelop and expand a company’s global customer base and negotiate international contracts while minimizing financial risk. Through various standby Letter of Credit services, small-business owners can support regular supply contracts with foreign buyers and be covered for those goods in the event the buyer defaults on payment.
• Working Capital Solutions: Thissupports the growth of international sales by financing the exporting of products while maintaining working capital availability. Through the Export-Import Bank (Ex-Im Bank), the official export credit agency of the United States, SBA export financing and Trade Credit Insurance, small-businesses owners have additional options to access working capital needed to export their goods around the world.
• Payment Risk Mitigation Solutions: This improves cash flow and expedites payments for overseas transactions by using Regions’ connections with banks around the globe to collect and process payments from foreign financial institutions.
• Foreign Business Solutions: These help international companies receive small-business exports from U.S.-based companies by providing financing for purchases. Through the use of Bankers Acceptance, foreign companies receive a letter of credit for a specified time period. Additionally, Ex-Im Bank Guarantee Medium-Term Financing helps creditworthy international buyers and provides payments to exporters.