Pinnacle Loans $930 Million to Companies in Round Two of the Paycheck Protection Program

Since March 2020, the firm has issued 23,778 PPP loans worth $3.2 billion, with 94% under $350,000

In the second round of Paycheck Protection Program lending, Pinnacle Financial Partners made more than 9,000 loans worth $930 million to local businesses in need across its footprint. Combined with first round lending, the firm issued 23,778 PPP loans worth more than $3.2 billion. For context, Pinnacle’s loan growth in all of 2019 was $2.1 billion.

“I maintain that the Paycheck Protection Program is one of the most effective uses of government stimulus I have ever seen, despite the complications,” said Terry Turner, Pinnacle’s president and CEO. “Local businesses needed help, and this injection of funding helped millions of them survive. Our associates spent more than a year on this incredible effort, and they delivered in ways only Pinnacle can. Their preparation and willingness to tackle the complexities are a true demonstration of what makes Pinnacle different, but the real value is in the 23,000 businesses in our home communities that will make it to the other side of this crisis because of the funding we helped them get.”

The average size of a second round PPP loan from Pinnacle in 2021 was $102,441, down from $157,189 in the first round, and 94 percent were considered small-dollar loans with amounts below $350,000.

• 2021 Small-dollar Loans Less than $350,000
  • 8,501 loans worth $494 million
  • 94 percent of the total loans Pinnacle made
  • Average loan size in this category is $58,109
• 2021 Mid-size Loans Larger than $350,000 and Less than $1 million
  • 461 loans worth $259 million
  • 5 percent of the total loans Pinnacle made
  • Average loan size in this category is $561,625
• 2021 Large Loans Greater than $1 million
  • 110 loans worth $176.5 million
  • 1 percent of the total loans Pinnacle made
  • Average loan size in this category is $1.6 million

PPP lending in 2021 was a much different process than in 2020. Pinnacle’s PPP team had more time to prepare but also faced more complications and greater scrutiny in the SBA review process. It took a full-time, dedicated effort from dozens of associates and continued attention from practically all relationship managers to advise clients and take in and process PPP applications.

When combined with first round PPP loans in 2020, Pinnacle saw enormous success with small-dollar and mid-size loans, getting much needed funding to small businesses facing revenue shortfalls and added expenses, both related to the pandemic.

• Total Small-dollar Loans Less than $350,000
  • 21,784 loans worth $1.4 billion
  • 91 percent of the total loans Pinnacle made
  • Average loan size in this category is $63,096
• Total Mid-size Loans Larger than $350,000 and Less than $1 million
  • 1,490 loans worth $851.9 million
  • 6 percent of the total loans Pinnacle made
  • Average loan size in this category is $571,748
• Total Large Loans Larger than $1 million
  • 504 loans worth $1 billion
  • 3 percent of the total loans Pinnacle made
  • Average loan size in this category is $2 million

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. Pinnacle has already opened its forgiveness application portal for second round loans, and the number of forgiveness applications for first round loans is steadily increasing. With lending now closed, the SBA appears to be processing and approving forgiveness applications at a faster rate. Pinnacle is encouraging first round PPP borrowers to apply for forgiveness now before deadlines start hitting in the summer.

“We’re encouraged by the increased number of PPP loan payoffs we’ve seen recently from the SBA,” Turner said. “This process isn’t over when we fund the loan. We’ve been working with clients since October on the forgiveness process, and we’ve spent more than a year now advising businesses who are facing pandemic-related troubles. It started with PPP and our intensive deferral and credit review process, and now we’re moving into the home stretch with PPP forgiveness and the new SBA grant programs that launched this month. It’s been a difficult road, and our associates have worked hand in hand with their clients every step of the way.”

Resources for Pinnacle clients working on forgiveness are available at PNFP.com/PPPForgiveness. And though banks are not directly involved in the programs, Pinnacle is advising clients on the Restaurant Revitalization Fund and Shuttered Venue Operators Grant at PNFP.com/SBARelief.

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. The firm is the No. 1 bank in the Nashville-Murfreesboro-Franklin MSA, according to 2020 deposit data from the FDIC. Pinnacle earned a spot on the 2021 list of 100 Best Companies to Work For^® in the U.S., its fifth consecutive appearance. American Banker recognized Pinnacle as one of America’s Best Banks to Work For eight years in a row and No. 1 among banks with more than $10 billion in assets in 2020.

Pinnacle owns a 49 percent interest in Bankers Healthcare Group (BHG), which provides innovative, hassle-free financial solutions to healthcare practitioners and other licensed professionals. Great Place to Work and FORTUNE ranked BHG No. 1 on its 2020 list of Best Workplaces in New York State in the small/medium business category.

The firm began operations in a single location in downtown Nashville, TN in October 2000 and has since grown to approximately $35.3 billion in assets as of March 31, 2021. 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.