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Fresno, CA, April 09, 2020 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- “Premier Valley Bank and its sister banks are currently processing approximately $1.5B in Paycheck Protection Program loans” said Lo Nestman, President and CEO of Premier Valley Bank. After they received over 7,000 requests for loans under the CARES Act Paycheck Protection Program in 72 hours, Premier Valley Bank and its sister banks stopped accepting new requests for the program on Monday afternoon. Nestman stated, “Our customers and wide-spread local communities are depending on us now more than ever, and our teams across the company have stepped up and worked countless hours to provide a lifeline to our customers as they navigate the provisions of the CARES Act.”
Unlike many banks across the country, Premier Valley Bank and other Heartland Financial USA, Inc. community banks began accepting applications for the Paycheck Protection Program early on Friday morning just hours after the SBA published interim rules for participation. “We have been closely monitoring developments and preparing to be agile to accommodate the many changes introduced by the SBA, so that we were able to support our customers and local communities during this time of need,” added Nestman. “Our small business customers across the Wisconsin footprint have struggled to navigate the complexity and changing requirements of the of the Paycheck Protection Program and we have hosted an educational webinar, built resource centers on our bank website and individually consulted with customers to provide support and assist them in calculating payroll costs and completing applications correctly.” he said.
On Monday, April 6, the Federal Reserve released a statement committing the central bank to providing financing to lenders processing the $350B Paycheck Protection Program. Additionally, early on Tuesday morning, April 7, U.S. Treasury Security Steven Mnuchin, told Fox Business Network, that over 3,000 lenders were participating in the $349 billion small business loan program and the Federal Reserve and Treasury were working to set up facilities to support main street and municipal borrowers. Mnuchin said, “If you can’t get the loan today or tomorrow, don’t worry there will be money. If we run out of money, we’ll go back for more. There is extraordinary demand.”
Nestman commented, “It’s encouraging to see our government agencies rapidly responding to the demand for the program and recognizing that banks, even those like Premier Valley Bank that have strong liquidity and are well capitalized, do not have unlimited resources to meet the needs of customers during this crisis alone.”
Premier Valley Bank is not only relying on the government and the CARES Act to support customers and employees as they battle the current COVID-19 pandemic. They have delivered relief programs for consumers and business customers that include waiving account maintenance and ATM fees, deferral on loan payments and waiving penalties on early redemption of CDs. And in addition to moving most employees to work from home arrangements, the company’s liberal pandemic time off program provides 100% compensation through May 31, for employees who are unable to work due to illness, school and daycare closures or other reasons caused by the pandemic. Premier Valley Bank is paying front line workers in their branches and call centers a premium and has offered 100% coverage for health care expenses related to COVID-19. Nestman shared, “Our employees take care of our customers every day and are the reason for our success, and during these unprecedented times, our number one priority is the health and safety of the Premier Valley Bank family. We want our employees to take care of themselves, their families and each other and not worry about a paycheck. Our employees have peace of mind knowing – we’ve got them covered.”
CONTACT:
Nichole Lerma
Marketing Specialist
559.256.6429
NLerma@premiervalleybank.com
About
About Premier Valley Bank Premier Valley Bank, a member of Heartland Financial USA, Inc., (NASDAQ: HTLF), is a community bank with assets of more than $900 million. Premier Valley Bank offers a wide array of deposit, loan and private client services from locations in Fresno, Oakhurst, Mariposa, Groveland, San Luis Obispo, Paso Robles and Morro Bay. For more information, visit www.premiervalleybank.com or call 877.280.1863. Premier Valley Bank is a member of the FDIC and an Equal Housing Lender. About Heartland Financial USA, Inc. Heartland Financial USA, Inc. is a diversified financial services company with assets of $13.2 billion. The company provides banking, mortgage, private client, investment and insurance services to individuals and businesses. Heartland currently has 114 banking locations serving 83 communities in Iowa, Illinois, Wisconsin, New Mexico, Arizona, Montana, Colorado, Minnesota, Kansas, Missouri, Texas and California. Additional information about Heartland Financial USA, Inc. is available at www.htlf.com. Safe Harbor Statement This release, and future oral and written statements of Heartland and its management, may contain forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 about Heartland’s financial condition, results of operations, plans, objectives, future performance and business. Although these forward-looking statements are based upon the beliefs, expectations and assumptions of Heartland’s management, there are a number of factors, many of which are beyond the ability of management to control or predict, that could cause actual results to differ materially from those in its forward-looking statements. These factors, which are detailed in the risk factors included in Heartland’s Annual Report on Form 10-K filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission, include, among others: (i) the strength of the local and national economy; (ii) the economic impact of past and any future terrorist threats and attacks and any acts of war, (iii) changes in state and federal laws, regulations and governmental policies concerning the Company’s general business; (iv) changes in interest rates and prepayment rates of the Company’s assets; (v) increased competition in the financial services sector and the inability to attract new customers; (vi) changes in technology and the ability to develop and maintain secure and reliable electronic systems; (vii) the loss of key executives or employees; (viii) changes in consumer spending; (ix) unexpected results of acquisitions; (x) unexpected outcomes of existing or new litigation involving the Company; and (xi) changes in accounting policies and practices. All statements in this release, including forward-looking statements, speak only as of the date they are made, and Heartland undertakes no obligation to update any statement in light of new information or future events.