In this day of mergers, acquisitions, and massively large corporations, it may seem slightly surprising that community banks still flourish in the face of big competition. But community banks are seen as critical to the country’s economy and serve an important role.
In fact, The Federal Reserve System acknowledged the importance of community banks when it started publishing Community Banking Connections. It defines community banks as those with less than $10 billion in total assets.
Community banks are typically more agile and flexible in their lending because they understand their community and customers on a more intimate level. And a lot of the U.S. economy flows through them. According to The Independent Community Bankers of America, community banks:
* Comprise 99 percent of all banks
* Provide more than 60 percent of all small business loans
* Make more than 80 percent of agricultural loans
* Have more than 50,000 locations nationwide
* Employ nearly 750,000 people
One more thing:
*Community banks support community newspapers like the Dimple Times! They see the value in “local” because they are local.
