The U.S. Small Business Administration South Dakota District Office has announced its annual Leadership in Lending Awards. These awards recognize the dramatic increase in small business lending across South Dakota over the last year and highlight the top small business lenders across the state.
SBA works with lenders through a variety of programs to provide capital for small business startup and growth. The SBA loan guarantee helps lenders and the borrowers mitigate issues that can cause a conventional loan to be declined. South Dakota has 47 active SBA lenders and these lenders help fund critical job creators and innovators in our local communities.
SBA South Dakota District 2025 Leadership in Lending Award recipients:
- First Bank & Trust – Achieved the highest dollar volume and most loans for the SBA 7(a) lending program in South Dakota making 23 loans for a total of $14 million statewide. These loans supported 332 jobs.
- Dakota Business Finance – An SBA Certified Development Company (CDC), was the top producer for both loan number and loan dollar volume for 504 loans in the state. Dakota Business Finance approved 52 SBA 504 loans totaling $46 million. The loans supported 847 jobs in a variety of industries.
- First Dakota National Bank. This lender is the third-party 504 lender award recipient with 14 loans totaling $21 million. A third-party lender financial institution partners with a Certified Development Company to provide up to 50% of the total cost for an owner-occupied commercial real estate project.
The 7(a) loan program is the SBA’s primary program for providing financial assistance to small businesses and offers guarantees on loans up to $5 million. SBA 7(a) loans are commonly used for acquiring land, purchasing equipment, or working capital.
Top 10 7a Lenders FY2025 in South Dakota
- First Bank & Trust
- The First National Bank in Sioux Falls
- Live Oak Banking Company
- Dacotah Bank
- Titan Bank
- American Bank and Trust
- Everwise Credit Union
- GBC International Bank
- Northeast Bank
- Cortrust Bank
The 504 Loan Program provides long-term, fixed rate financing of up to $5 million for major fixed assets that promote business growth and job creation. 504 loans are available through Certified Development Companies (CDC), SBA’s community-based partners who regulate nonprofits and promote economic development within their communities. CDCs are certified and regulated by the SBA.
Top 10 SBA 504 Third Partly Lenders FY2025
- First Dakota National Bank
- American Bank & Trust
- First National Bank
- Black Hills Community Bank
- Frontier Bank
- Plains Commerce Bank
- Bank Midwest
- The First National Bank in Sioux Falls
- Bankwest
- Dacotah Bank
The microloan program provides loans up to $50,000 to help small businesses start up and expand. SBA provides funds to specially designated microlenders, which are nonprofit community-based organizations with experience in lending. SBA microlenders provide management and technical assistance to their borrowers. GROW South Dakota is SBA’s Microloan intermediary in South Dakota. More information on SBA’s lending programs is available at https://www.sba.gov/funding-programs/loans.
“Small businesses and lenders are seeing tremendous opportunity in this economy. America First means America is growing again. People are eager to invest in their communities and grow their businesses,” said SBA Regional Administrator Justin Everett. “I am incredibly pleased with these numbers coming out of South Dakota.”
“Fiscal Year 2025 was a huge year for SBA lending in South Dakota,” said SBA South Dakota District Director Bryson Patterson. “Overall, FY2025 was the highest total dollar volume year since 2022 in the state and was the highest dollar year ever for the 7(a) loan program in the state.” The SBA guaranteed more than $161 million in small business loans through a variety of lending programs including the 504, 7(a), and micro loan programs.
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