The New Hampshire Community Loan Fund honored with Community Advocacy Award

BOSTON, Mass. – Eastern Bank Foundation announced the New Hampshire Community Loan Fund as a 2022 Community Advocacy Award honoree for its pioneering efforts in providing loans, capital, training and technical assistance that assist businesses and people across New Hampshire with achieving economic stability. A Community Development Financial Institution founded 38 years ago, the Community Loan Fund helps New Hampshire residents gain access to affordable housing, secure jobs, and quality child care, and has reached 170 towns and every New Hampshire county. Impact reported by the Community Loan Fund includes more than $400 million in loans, and the creation or preservation of more than 10,800 affordable housing units and 3,900 jobs.

“For decades, the New Hampshire Community Loan Fund has laid the foundation for many people to thrive in New Hampshire by extending the reach of conventional lenders and public institutions and bringing people and institutions together to solve challenges,” said Nancy Huntington Stager, President and CEO of the Eastern Bank Foundation.

The Community Loan Fund has pioneered the role of a CDFI as a financing partner in the revitalization of economically distressed and underserved communities, and serves as a catalyst to enable traditionally underserved people to participate more fully in New Hampshire’s economy. Its work with small businesses focuses on providing loans, capital and technical assistance. It has invested millions of dollars and helped to secure millions more in loans to small businesses in sectors that include manufacturing, technology, retail and energy. It has also facilitated nearly 80,000 hours of technical assistance to small businesses.

Steve Saltzman, President and CEO of the New Hampshire Community Loan Fund said, “The New Hampshire Community Loan Fund aims to transform lives by bringing economic justice to people, neighborhoods and communities that have been historically disenfranchised.”

Zachery Palmer, Community Business Lender at the New Hampshire Community Loan Fund added, “Closing the wealth gap and solving disparities takes a multi-faceted, evolving approach. By creating new and innovative capital structures that help businesses in the community with the financial resources and tools to thrive, we are one step closer to an equitable economy.”

The celebration of Eastern’s Community Advocacy Award coincides with the Eastern Bank Foundation’s commitment to economic inclusion and mobility through its philanthropy, volunteerism and advocacy, including to advance equity in the small business ecosystem. Recognizing that entrepreneurs and business owners are building blocks for the local economy, the Foundation seeks to fund organizations that build ecosystems of support for business owners in historically disadvantaged communities, including Black, Latinx, Asian, women, LGBTQ+, Veterans and people with disabilities.

Read more about all of the 2022 Community Advocacy Award honorees at:

www.easternbank.com/communityadvocacyawards.

Eastern Bank welcomes Asian Atlantic Industries, LLC as an asset-based lending customer

BOSTON, Mass. – Eastern Bank announced Asian Atlantic Industries, LLC as a new asset-based lending customer. Founded in 1998 by CEO Tom Mahoney, AAI is a global supplier of electronic components and semiconductors. Headquartered in Portsmouth, New Hampshire, AAI uses its proprietary software to track the universe of supply and demand, providing its customers with real-time product availability from its vast database of manufacturers and resellers.

“Asian Atlantic Industries is pleased to begin a new banking relationship with Eastern Bank,” said Tom Mahoney, Founder and CEO of Asian Atlantic Industries, LLC. “The experience and relationship focus of the Eastern team were evident from our initial meetings. The flexibility of the financing solution will allow our company to take advantage of current opportunities in the market, and support our recent and projected growth.”

“For over 20 years, Asian Atlantic Industries has served the growing electronic component marketplace with a commitment to deliver outstanding client support,” said Greg Buscone, Executive Vice President, Senior Commercial Banking Officer of Eastern Bank. “We are proud to assist with their financing needs.”

Eastern provides a range of commercial financing offerings to help companies across many industries to improve cash flow, increase efficiencies and build for the future. Commercial lending solutions include working capital/lines of credit, equipment/term loans, real estate loans, acquisition financing, asset-based lending and employee stock ownership plan-related financing.

The Commercial Banking team advising Asian Atlantic Industries includes Executive Vice President, Senior Commercial Banking Officer Greg Buscone, Head of Asset-Based Lending Don Lewis, and Senior Vice President and Relationship Manager Dan Bolger.

This article originally appeared on Portsmouth Herald: Eastern Bank honors Community Loan Fund: Seacoast business news