Oriental Bank and Trust’s new and expanded commercial banking structure is starting to show the results of the growth that came with last year’s acquisition of the defunct Eurobank, with commercial loan production reaching $46 million during the second quarter, an increase of about 126 percent year-over-year, bank officials said Tuesday.
In what may constitute as yet another sign of economic improvement, the U.S. Small Business Administration confirmed it has approved nearly $65 million in loan guarantees during the first nine months of fiscal 2011, reflecting a 29 percent increase in year-over-year activity in Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Sixty-seven small businesses in the areas of services, agriculture, manufacturing and technology received a combined $36.5 million in loans from the Economic Development Bank Tuesday, through which they will create some 5,700 jobs, agency President Ivonne Otero announced.