Pinnacle Loans $34.5 Million to Upstate Companies in the Paycheck Protection Program

341 local businesses received a PPP loan from the firm, with 94% under $350,000

Through the end of Wednesday, May 6, Pinnacle Financial Partners has made more than $34.5 million in loans for Upstate-area companies through the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP). This figure represents 341 local businesses that received emergency funding to pay their employees and essential bills during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

“We want to do our part to help the economies in Greenville, Spartanburg, Easley, Mauldin and all of our communities,” said Ed Stein, Pinnacle’s market president in Upstate South Carolina. “The PPP has allowed Pinnacle to very quickly pump a huge amount of money into the South Carolina economy. We’re grateful to take part and thankful for a team of associates who have worked long hours through the crisis to support their clients.”

The average size of a PPP loan from Pinnacle in the Upstate is $101,121, with nearly all of them coming in well below $350,000 each.

• Small-dollar Loans Less than $350,000
  • 322 loans worth a total of $18.9 million
  • 94 percent of the total loans Pinnacle made in the market
  • Average loan size in this category is $58,762.
• Mid-size Loans Larger than $350,000 and Less than $2 million
  • 18 loans worth a total of $13.3 million
  • 5 percent of the total loans Pinnacle made in the market
  • Average loan size in this category is $737,297.
• Large Loans of More than $2 million
  • 1 loan worth $2.3 million
  • Less than 1 percent of the total loans Pinnacle made in the market

Firm-wide so far, Pinnacle has originated more than $2.4 billion in loans to nearly 14,000 small businesses, an amount well-above what would have been expected for a bank of its asset size. Statewide in South Carolina, it comes to $144.8 million loaned to 1,317 businesses. Hundreds of associates across the firm worked around the clock to process, review and submit those thousands of applications, clearing 6,000 in the first wave and the remainder once the second round of funding for the program was approved by Congress.

“The need from our clients is tremendous, showing just how far reaching this crisis has been,” said Terry Turner, Pinnacle’s president and CEO. “Fortunately, the federal government and America’s banks mustered their forces to meet the challenge. An emergency such as this required fast and decisive action that, despite its imperfections, showed how committed our industry is to supporting the economies we serve and the small businesses that drive them. We couldn’t be more proud of our associates for their efforts to give help where it was needed.”

These loans are made from Pinnacle funds and include an SBA guarantee. They are potentially eligible for forgiveness if used by the borrower for required purposes and in the allowed eight-week time period. While the SBA has not yet issued all details on what will be required for forgiveness, Pinnacle is advising clients based on the language of the CARES Act and ongoing guidance from the Treasury Department.

“There are still a lot of questions we don’t have answers for yet, but the intent of the program is pretty clear,” Turner said. “I believe this law was intended to keep workers on payrolls, despite their employers’ businesses being negatively affected by COVID-19, and also to allow business owners to pay their most essential bills. For clients that follow the rules of the program, we encourage them apply for forgiveness. We’ll be here to help them through it all the way to the end.”

Pinnacle has hosted several online webinars for clients on PPP forgiveness. Those videos, along with more guidance, are posted on Pinnacle’s website at PNFP.com/PPPForgiveness.

Pinnacle Financial Partners provides a full range of banking, investment, trust, mortgage and insurance products and services designed for businesses and their owners and individuals interested in a comprehensive relationship with their financial institution. Pinnacle earned a spot on FORTUNE’s 2020 list of the 100 Best Companies to Work For^® in the U.S., its fourth consecutive appearance. American Banker recognized Pinnacle as one of America’s Best Banks to Work For seven years in a row.

Pinnacle entered the South Carolina market in 2017 when it acquired BNC Bancorp. Pinnacle continues BNC’s practice of offering community bank service with the resources and sophistication of a larger firm.

            The firm began operations in a single location in downtown Nashville, TN in October 2000 and has since grown to approximately $29.3 billion in assets as of March 31, 2020. As the second-largest bank holding company headquartered in Tennessee, Pinnacle operates in 12 primarily urban markets in Tennessee, the Carolinas, Virginia and Atlanta.

            Additional information concerning Pinnacle, which is included in the Nasdaq Financial-100 Index, can be accessed at www.pnfp.com.