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and where they are from. I love doing this. But if I get a sense they may not be ready, I ask them to come back with a more detailed business plan that meets SBA guidelines. I do them no favors by lending them money they can't repay." For the small-business sector, Webster Bank's experience and dedication opens up opportunities. It makes the financing of operating capital, fixed assets and business acquisitions — the building blocks of small companies — possible. The bank is not the only one that partners with the SBA, but is recognized as one of the best SBA lenders in the state. In the fiscal year ending September 30, 2018, the SBA Connecticut District Office backed 864 loans totaling $317 million. The SBA named Webster Bank as winners in the Top Lender by Dollar and Top 504 Third-Party Lender by Volume state categories. "We were the No. 1 bank in all of New England for lending in dollars," said Polito. "To beat out all the other banks …. Well, I'm still over the moon about it." Active in acquisitions Where Webster Bank has made a name for itself in SBA lending overall, acquisition lending is where the institution truly shines. Acquisitions are an area of high demand, said Polito. Perhaps it's a case of a mom-and-pop business where the owners want to retire. Do they sell the company to their employees? To one or all of their children? Or to someone else in the market for a business like theirs? This is where Polito and his team of eight SBA professionals — representing about a century's worth of combined Sponsored Content WEBSTER BANK INTELLIGENCE SERIES | Robert Polito Jr., director of government guaranteed lending, Webster Bank | Continued >

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