Ridgestone Financial Services achieved third quarter earnings of $1.4 million, up from $579,000 for the same period a year ago.
The improvement resulted largely from continued growth in government-guaranteed lending, net interest margin improvement and reduction of expenses related to loan collection efforts.
The company’s earnings through the third quarter grew to $5.6 million, or $1.68 per share, compared with $798,000, or 24 cents per share, for the first nine months of 2012.
Ridgestone Bank is a privately-held bank with locations in Brookfield, Wis. and Schaumburg, Ill.
“We continue to focus on the origination of government guaranteed loans for new and existing customers,” said Bruce Lammers, president and chief executive officer of Ridgestone Bank. “This has resulted in the origination of $203.7 million of new government guaranteed loans during the first nine months of 2013. Additionally, strong demand continues in the secondary market and premiums are holding up in the market.”
Ridgestone Bank is the top Small Business Administration loan provider in Illinois, and ranks as the third-leading SBA loan provider in Wisconsin. The bank ranks seventh in the nation in SBA loan volume.
