Page 22 - BusinessWest August 8, 2022

Making Contact
New Valley Bank Grows by Staying True to Its Philosophy
By Joseph Bednar
When BusinessWest spoke to Jeff Sullivan in late 2019, about six months after New Valley Bank & Trust opened in downtown Springfield — the first Springfield-based bank to open in more than a decade — he talked about focusing on
smaller commercial loans than larger banks prefer to take on, and quick turnaround times as well.
“We like hitting singles, and we
think we do it well; we think that’s
an overlooked part of the market. ”
The driving philosophy, amid a landscape of ever-larger mergers and acquisitions in banking, was to serve small to medium-sized businesses in a high-touch way they don’t necessarily expe- rience at large institutions.
That philosophy is still true today — and it works, to judge by the growth of New Valley in its first three years, with 35 employees, just under $300 million in assets, and a third branch set to open in West Springfield in September (more on that later).
“Some of our bigger compet- itors, just as a function of their size, have to do larger deals. It’s just a math equation; they’ve got to feed a bigger engine,” Sullivan said during our recent visit, noting that many large banks don’t want to focus on deals under seven figures.
“But all those $100,000 and $500,000 relationships really mean a lot to us,” he went on. “We like hitting singles, and we think we do it well; we think that’sanoverlookedpartofthe market.”
While many large banks have long assumed that non-bank lenders, like LendingClub and Kabbage, would grab significant market share in the small-busi- ness community, Sullivan said, people still value local banking relationships.
“They say, ‘I know these
people, I trust them, and if I have a really bad year or something bad happens to my business, I know somebody at that bank I can call to help me.’ If you’re dealing with an 800 number of a
Staff Photo
Jeff Sullivan says New Valley came into the market wanting to cater to small and medium-sized businesses, and that philosophy has served the bank well.
A Partner in Your Journey,
A Partner in Your Success.
At Melanson, we are committed to ensuring that our clients receive the highest level of professional accounting services as well as the personal touch of a trusted advisor.
Call us today to find out how we can partner with you! 800.282.2440 | melansoncpas.com
22 AUGUST 8, 2022
BANKING & FINANCE
BusinessWest