U.S. Bank targets small-business growth by bundling checking and card services

U.S. Bank is making a major push to win small-business owners by bundling checking, merchant processing, and new credit cards together, according to Banking Dive. Chief Financial Officer John Stern said the Minneapolis-based lender wants to capture more customers at the higher end of the small-business market. Small-business banking currently makes up about 10 percent of the bank's total revenue. The Bank serves about 2 million small businesses across the country. Average deposits for this segment rose 2 percent year over year to $45 billion in the third quarter. Average loans jumped 11 percent to $18 billion, while fee income grew 9 percent to $223 million. "That has really been the way to go," Stern said in an interview, explaining how the Bank successfully built up its Smartly consumer savings suite. U.S. Bank recently launched two new business credit cards in September that offer relationship boosts tied to account balances and link directly to the bank's spend management platform. Executives noted that entrepreneurs often care more about smooth money movement and account capabilities than raw interest rates. Total third-quarter net income reached $2.2 billion on a 9 percent rise in revenue to about $8 billion. To fuel this expansion, the lender is actively adding business bankers in Florida, Georgia, Dallas, and Phoenix. For your business, this means tighter relationship perks and more specialized card options if you Bank with major national lenders. At least the Bank is focusing on what matters: making it easier to move your money.