Minneapolis-based U.S. Bancorp plans to add about 300 employees to its downtown Milwaukee workforce in the next couple of years, according to U.S. Bank vice president Joe Ullrich.
Most of the additional employees would be in U.S. Bank’s funds services group, Ullrich said.
U.S. Bank is in the process of “re-stacking” its downtown Milwaukee employees to find room for the planned additions, Ullrich said. The company has about 500,000 square feet of office space in its 42-story U.S. Bank Center at 777 E. Wisconsin Ave. and in other nearby buildings, he said.
The bank has 49 branches and more than 3,500 employees in the Milwaukee area.
U.S. Bank also reported today that small business lending was up 15 percent in the Milwaukee area in 2013, driven mainly by equipment loans.
“After several years of holding back, small businesses in the region are investing in their companies again,” said Mike Ward, Milwaukee small business manager for U.S. Bank. “Business owners have more faith in the economy today than they have in some time and that confidence is translating into a definite uptick in borrowing.”
