Union Bank

• Diversity Lending Program
• Variety of Small Business Loans
• Experienced Leader
• Educational Resources
• Wide Availability

Diversity Lending Program

Union Bank has been actively pursuing an increase in loans to small business customers. Small business lending has increased at Union Bank from $170 million in 2010 to $747 million in 2014. Small Businesses can apply for secured loans, unsecured loans, or Small Business Administration loans. Union Bank also offers a Diversity Lending Program for minority-owned, woman-owned, and veteran-owned businesses. For loans of $50,000 or less, small business applicants can apply online. For loans greater than $50,000 applicants can either call Union Bank or visit one of the bank's branches.

Variety of Small Business Loans

Union Bank offers small businesses a wide variety of loans to choose from. The bank's small business loan portfolio includes:

• Unsecured loans for equipment, building improvement, and working capital, with terms up to 60 months and loan amounts of $10,000 - $3,000,000
• Single payment option loans for short-term funding, with terms up to three months and loan amounts of $10,000 - $3,000,000
• Vehicle loans for buying or refinancing new or used vehicles, with terms up to 60 months and loan amounts of $10,000 - $3,000,000
• Savings secured loans for any business uses, with terms up to 60 months and loan amounts of $10,000 - $3,000,000
• Commercial real estate loans for purchase or refinance of property, or improvement/expansion of leasehold or owned property, with terms up to 25 years and loan amounts of $7,000,000 - $15,000,000

Experienced Leader

Union Bank was founded in 1864 and purchased by MUFG in 2008. Union Bank has increased its lending to small businesses by 400 percent since 2010 and also offers small businesses savings, checking, and payroll services, in addition to alternative funding options that include lines of credit.

Educational Resources

Small business customers of Union Bank have access to its Small Business Resource Center with calculators to help determine how much capital a business needs to operate or calculate inventory turnover rate. The Small Business Resource Center also includes articles on business financial management and other topics to help your business grow successfully.

Wide Availability

Union Bank has branches throughout the U.S. Its loans are available to businesses in all 50 states, Guam, Puerto Rico, the Virgin Islands, and the District of Columbia.

• Missing Information
• Alternative Payment Methods

Missing Information

There is not enough information on Union Bank's website to determine what kind of payment terms you would receive for the loans. The company does not list a range of interest rates or APRs for the various loans or the cost of the fees it charges in addition to the interest rates. A requirement for repayment of all the loans available through Union Bank is automatic deduction from a Union Bank business checking or savings account, so you must have or open a checking or savings account with Union Bank in order to qualify for a loan. Before they apply for a loan, customers should be able to access information about the interest rates and the cost of any fees they may be charged for the financing. With the lack of pricing information Union Bank includes on its website, it is not possible to determine if it offers affordable financing options compared to other lenders. Data the company should consider adding to its website include:

• Range of APRs or interest rates for different types of loans
• Prepayment penalties
• Costs of fees, including
  • Loan fee
  • Documentation fee
  • Processing fee
• Required credit rating to qualify for loans
• Required time in business to qualify for loans
• Required minimum annual or monthly revenue to qualify for loans
• How long the approval process takes

Alternative Payment Methods

Some customers may already have established business and/or checking accounts with other banks. If Union Bank can provide a way for its customers to make their loan payments using external bank accounts, it may acquire more loan applicants and reduce the cost and frustration for small businesses to obtain financing.