with Interest
I C B A I n AC t I o n
ICBA Leaders Join
President Obama
AP/Wide World Photos
to Announce Small
Business Lending President Obama and ICBA Immediate Past Chairman
Cynthia Blankenship at a White House conference.
Initiatives at
an incredible tool for commu- conference. ICBA President
White House Press nity banks nationwide to help and CEO Cam Fine and ICBA
jump-start the economy and leader David Schroeder, pres-
Conference credit markets,” she said. ident and CEO of American
The Obama administration’s Enterprise Bank in Buffalo
I CBA Immediate Past Chairman Cindy
Blankenship joined President Barack Obama
and Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner to
ICBA-backed lending initia-
tives, which took affect last
month, include up to $15 bil-
Grove, Ill., also participated
in a roundtable discussion on
the initiatives with Blankenship
participate in a White House press conference lion in funding for SBA pro- before the press conference.
to introduce up to $15 billion in new small busi- gram government-guarantees ICBA’s work with the admin-
ness lending initiatives and government loan and reduced fees. Upfront fees istration received widespread
guarantees for Main Street America. The ICBA- of up to 3.75 percent and some media coverage, including a
advocated funding initiatives, including sup- processing charges on certain live CNBC interview with Fine
port for the Term Asset-Backed Securities Loan SBA loans will be eliminated. on the White House lawn min-
Facility program the association advocated for, Government guarantees on cer- utes after the press conference.
aim at unfreezing lending in the secondary mar- tain SBA loans will increase ICBA has worked closely
kets for Small Business Administration loans from 85 percent to 90 percent with the administration, the
that community banks use most effectively. for loans below $150,000 and Federal Reserve and Cong