Latest news with #commercialloans
Finextra
06-08-2025
- Business
- Finextra
HSLC picks Vine for AI-powered commercial lending
HSLC, $227 million community bank serving Ohio and Kentucky, will reduce commercial loan processing time from days to hours after implementing Vine's AI-powered lending platform. 0 This content is provided by an external author without editing by Finextra. It expresses the views and opinions of the author. The 130-year-old institution expects to eliminate manual document processing while improving accuracy across its commercial real estate, equipment financing, and agricultural lending portfolio. Based in Kenton, Ohio, HSLC recently opened branches in Lexington, Ky., where it does a majority of its business lending. The bank offers commercial loans for everything from commercial real estate to equipment financing and agriculture. 'When I first heard about Vine, I knew we had an opportunity ahead of us. If there was something out there that could truly cut our loan processing time down from days to just hours, we needed that,' said Chris Jones, president, CEO and director of HSLC. 'Anything that streamlines our work and makes us more efficient is a win for us and for our borrowers. We've had a great implementation with Vine and look forward to working with them.' With Vine, HSLC will have one unified system for the entire commercial loan lifecycle. The AI-powered system will cut down time-consuming, manual processes associated with commercial lending, including document reading, financial spreading, and document generation. While the platform increases efficiency, it also promotes accuracy by removing many of the errors associated with manual data entry or siloed lending systems. 'HSLC has a true dedication to their community and especially the businesses they serve,' said David Eads, CEO and co-founder at Vine. 'A big part of our mission is freeing community bankers up to do what they do best: build relationships with their customers. Chris and his team are a great example of that, and we are proud to support the banks making a difference in their local economies.'
Reuters
12-05-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Fed survey finds tighter standards, weaker demand for loans in first quarter
May 12 (Reuters) - Top U.S. bank lending officers said credit standards tightened over the first three months of the year, according to a report released on Monday by the Federal Reserve. During the first quarter banks reported "on balance tighter lending standards and weaker demand" for commercial and industrial loans for firms of all sizes, said the central bank's latest Senior Loan Officer Survey covering activity during the first quarter.
BreakingNews.ie
07-05-2025
- Business
- BreakingNews.ie
Ex-INBS boss Michael Fingleton was 'nodding through' top-up loans to certain clients, High Court told
Irish Nationwide Building Society was providing millions of euro in commercial loans and top-ups to clients before its board could approve them, including one to a commercial client who already had an exposure of a quarter of a billion euro at the time of their granted loan for developing luxury holiday residences in France, the High Court has heard. The civil case against former INBS chief Michael Fingleton is in its second day before the High Court, where it has been alleged that he negligently mismanaged the building society (INBS) and engaged in property "gambles" with high net-worth individuals in an informal and speculative manner. Advertisement Mr Fingleton (87), who is in ill health after a stroke, ran the building lender from 1971 to 2009, as managing director and chief executive. At its height in 2007, INBS had reported assets of €16 billion but was a high-profile casualty of the financial crisis of 2008. Liquidators for IBRC have taken the case against Mr Fingleton, who denies the allegation of negligent mismanagement. The losses, relating to property loans, had been estimated by the Irish Banking Resolution Corporation (IBRC) at €6 billion. However, only €250 million in damages is now being pursued by IBRC relating to five loans made by INBS, allegedly approved by Mr Fingleton, who the court was told was also 'nodding through' top-ups and extensions to certain clients. At the High Court on Wednesday, Lyndon MacCann SC, for IBRC, said the building society operated 'flawed policies', which were then ignored by the lender and made worse by what he called 'flawed practices'. Advertisement Mr MacCann said an expert witness for IBRC will give evidence to the court that the level of 'delegation of power' given to Mr Fingleton 'was hideously flawed'. Counsel said that in one instance, a borrower was approved for a loan of €28 million by Mr Fingleton months before it came before either the board or the credit panel of INBS in January 2009. The loan was for the purchase of two run-down hotels in the French Alps despite them not having planning permission for a proposed luxury residence development, and the actual application for the loan came before the board after it was already approved. The court heard that Mr Fingleton 'nodded' through loans, top-ups and loan extensions by phone or by 'scribbling' a note on memos that reached him, as he did not have a computer or email. Advertisement Mr MacCann said the France loan, referenced 'Ice Mountain', was allegedly approved by Mr Fingleton despite the borrower's company and his daughter already having a combined exposure of 'a third of a billion euro' to INBS and that the company was 'coming in at number seven in a Top of the Pops' - at €260 million - of those lenders with the most exposure to the bank. The court also heard that a different loan for £71 million was 'topped up' by a further £10 million to £81 million, with only Fingleton's approval being any record for the expanded loan. In the case of a separate loan valued at €130 million in 2009, after Mr Fingleton had retired, INBS asked the borrower to repay the outlay. However, the borrower told INBS that the loan had been granted on a 'non-recourse basis', which was disputed by the society. The court was told that the borrower provided INBS with a letter from Mr Fingleton allegedly confirming the non-recourse status of the loan, but INBS took legal advice which stated that the loans were of full recourse and that the borrower could indeed be pursued for the money, said counsel. Advertisement Mr MacCann described the letter stating the loans were non-recourse was an 'extraordinary document' for Mr Fingleton to write and that a handwriting expert will feature in the case. In opening the case on Tuesday, Mr MacCann said Mr Fingelton "gambled" with the society's money when he allegedly approved "speculative, risky" commercial loans, which sometimes had already been greenlit by him before they were taken before the board of directors, on which he also sat. The return on the loans and interest from INBS was that if the properties could get planning permission, they were to be "flipped" for a profit, making it a "joint-venture" for INBS in profit agreements. Ireland Court hears man accused of murdering his mother se... Read More The five loans "approved" by Mr Fingleton relate to property land development projects between 2006 and 2008 despite them having no zoning or planning permission, counsel said. Advertisement It is further alleged that there was no securities in place on the loans and no personal guarantee sought for or provided by the borrowers. Mr Fingleton was a prominent presence in Irish business during the Celtic Tiger and was reported to have been worth around €75 million in 2006. However, his son has told the courts that his father is reduced to €25,000 in two personal bank accounts and has outstanding judgment debts of more than €10.7 million. The case continues at the High Court.
Irish Times
07-05-2025
- Business
- Irish Times
Irish Nationwide providing millions in loans before board approval, Fingleton civil trial hears
Irish Nationwide Building Society (INBS) was providing millions of euro in commercial loans and top-ups to clients before its board could approve them, including one to a commercial client who already had an exposure of a quarter of a billion euro at the time of their granted loan for developing luxury holiday residences in France, the High Court has heard. The civil case against former INBS chief Michael Fingleton is in its second day before the High Court, where it has been alleged that he negligently mismanaged the building society and engaged in property 'gambles' with high net-worth individuals in an informal and speculative manner. Mr Fingleton (87), who is in ill health after a stroke, ran the building lender from 1971 to 2009, as managing director and chief executive. At its height in 2007, INBS had reported assets of €16 billion but was a high-profile casualty of the financial crisis of 2008. Liquidators for IBRC have taken the case against Mr Fingleton, who denies the allegation of negligent mismanagement. READ MORE The losses, relating to property loans, had been estimated by the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation (IBRC) at €6 billion. However, only €250 million in damages is now being pursued by IBRC relating to five loans made by INBS, allegedly approved by Mr Fingleton, who the court was told was also 'nodding through' top ups and extensions to certain clients. At the High Court on Wednesday, Lyndon MacCann SC, for IBRC, said the building society operated 'flawed policies', which were then ignored by the lender and made worse by what he called 'flawed practices'. Mr MacCann said an expert witness for IBRC will give evidence to the court that the level of 'delegation of power' given to Mr Fingleton 'was hideously flawed'. Counsel said that in one instance a borrower was approved a loan of €28 million by Mr Fingleton months before it came before either the board or the credit panel of INBS in January 2009. The loan was for the purchase of two run-down hotels in the French alps despite them not having planning permission for proposed a luxury residence development and that the actual application for the loan came before the board after it was already approved. The court heard that Mr Fingleton 'nodded' through loans, top-ups and loan extensions by phone or by 'scribbling' a note on memos that reached him, as he did not have a computer or email. Mr MacCann said the France loan, referenced 'Ice Mountain', was allegedly approved by Mr Fingleton despite the borrower's company and his daughter already having a combined exposure of 'a third of a billion euro' to INBS and that the company was 'coming in at number seven in a Top of the Pops' – at €260 million – of those lenders with the most exposure to the bank. The court also heard that a different loan for £71 million was 'topped up' by a further £10 million to £81 million, with only Fingleton's approval being any record for the expanded loan. In the case of a separate loan valued at €130 million in 2009, after Mr Fingleton had retired, INBS asked the borrower to repay the outlay. However, the borrower told INBS that the loan had been granted on a 'non-recourse basis' which was disputed by the society. The court was told that the borrower provided INBS with a letter from Mr Fingleton allegedly confirming the non-recourse status of the loan but INBS took legal advice which stated that the loans were of full recourse and that the borrower could indeed be pursued for the money, said counsel. Mr MacCann described the letter stating the loans were non-recourse was an 'extraordinary document' for Mr Fingleton to write and that a handwriting expert will feature in the case. In opening the case yesterday, Mr MacCann said Mr Fingelton 'gambled' with the society's money when he allegedly approved 'speculative, risky' commercial loans, which sometimes had already been greenlit by him before they were taken before the board of directors, on which he also sat. The return on the loans and interest from INBS was that if the properties could get planning permission, they were to be 'flipped' for a profit, making it a 'joint-venture' for INBS in profit agreements. The five loans 'approved' by Mr Fingleton relate to property land development projects between 2006 and 2008 despite them having no zoning or planning permission, counsel said. It is further alleged that there was no securities in place on the loans and no personal guarantee sought for or provided by the borrowers. Mr Fingleton was a prominent presence in Irish business during the Celtic Tiger and was reported to have been worth around €75 million in 2006. However, his son has told the courts that his father is reduced to €25,000 in two personal bank accounts and has outstanding judgment debts of more than €10.7 million. The case continues at the High Court.
