Republic Bank Expands, Eyes ABS Deals

Embarking on their sixth year as the No. 1 lender of Small Business Administration loans in Michigan, Republic Bancorp Inc. may also be embarking on a debut SBA-backed securitization in the near future, sad Tom Menacher, Republic's executive vice president and chief financial officer.

"Up until this point in time we've never had quite enough volume to be our own securitizer," said Menacher. "We typically sell the guaranteed portion, on an individual, loan by loan basis, to players such as GFC, Morgan Keegan, Prudential and others who pool them and securitize them."