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• APRIL 3, 2020 • Midlands Business Journal
Banking April 3, 2020
A section prepared by the staff of the Midlands Business Journal
Financial institutions, lenders evolving to help consumers, businesses through lingering crisis
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Matt Hillestad. “Veridian’s response adaptby Michelle Leach The recently signed $2 trillion Corona- ed quickly as new information became virus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security available from public health officials. In early March, we started social (CARES) Act stimulus package distancing measures; for examincludes several provisions ple, non-essential meetings were supported by financial services canceled, postponed or adjusted industry associations — includto take place as a virtual meeting enhancements to the Small ing, and we began sanitizing Business Administration’s lendhigh-traffic surfaces regularly.” ing programs — as community A microsite is dedicated to banks and credit unions continue keep members informed of its to support consumers and memevolving response measures. bers through the COVID-19 “We also started strongly crisis. encouraging members to use “I couldn’t be more proud Milobar online banking, our mobile app of the way our employees responded and served our members through and other remote-access options,” he said. rapidly-changing circumstances,” said “On March 17, we temporarily closed our Veridian Credit Union Regional Manager branch lobbies until further notice, leaving
Matt Hillestad, regional manager at Veridian Credit Union. drive-up service open for regular business for lower payments and exploring other hours.” options together.” By mid-March, Hillestad noted, the As of March 23, he said members were credit union was hearing from members eligible for a low-rate financial assistance financially impacted by the pandemic. loan (first payment scheduled 90 days after “We started waiving various fees, signing). expanding eligibility for Delay-a-Pay and “Since effective help is often specific more,” he said. “For impacted business to each member’s unique circumstances, members, we started restructuring loans we also established veridiancu.org/help to make it easier for our impacted members to reach out for the help they need,” Hillestad said. On March 10, U.S. Small Business Administration Nebraska District Office Director Leon Milobar noted an informational notice was published regarding deferments on SBA 7(a) and 504 loans and microloans, reminding lenders of their authority to provide relief (deferred payments) to existing customers under certain circumstances — information communicated to its lenders and the Nebraska For your convenience Bankers Association. you can now update On March 12, the SBA announced up to $2 million to small business in COVID-19 your records by simply disaster assistance loans. The Nebraska emailing any new info to Bankers Association and Nebraska Credsubscriptions@mbj.com or it Union League both have COVID-19 response pages that list resources for navigating directly to our consumers and employers, including on website and filling out modification or restructuring of SBA loans an update form. Continued on next page.
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Banking — inside APRI: 3, 2020
THE BUSINESS NEWSPAPER OF GREATER OMAHA, LINCOLN AND COUNCIL BLUFFS
THIS WEEK 'S ISSUE:
$2.00
VOL. 46 NO. 14
Parallel Technologies eyes dual path for Lincoln and Omaha market growth by Richard D. Brown
Revitalization efforts bring life to historic areas, outer edges of storied neighborhoods. – Page 2
40 er d Un 40
For Montgomery, construction is in the blood. – Page 3
s nd ds Tre idlan g A eM th in
Pioneering ag technologies, research address labor and other challenges to food supply chain. – Page 23
Parallel Technologies, an Eden Prairie, Minnesota-based firm specializing in offering complete solutions for operating data centers and intelligent buildings, is redoubling its footprint in the Lincoln and Omaha markets as a result of annual revenue growth of 55% in the two cities over the past two years. “With our additional hires for the new positions we’re looking for, we’re finding our clients want to tap into our curiosity to work with them to find better solutions to operating data centers and intelligent buildings,” said owner/CEO Dale Klein. Klein, a Minnesota native with 25 years of business technology experience, now heads a company that has grown to 135 employees — 10 at the Omaha office at 14238 Hillsdale Drive and another four that work out of a collaboration room in Lincoln at University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s Innovation Campus. The objective is singular, Klein Continued on page 10.
Senior Programming Engineers Vrushank Patel, left, and Bart Choat, in the Omaha office … Deploying cutting-edge sensor technologies for intelligent building projects. (photo courtesy of Parallel Technologies)
FNTS rolls out new security product to protect small, medium businesses by Dwain Hebda
The latest product from cloud and IT managed services provider FNTS is bringing the company’s expertise to bear on small and medium-sized businesses. FNTS’ First Protector is a bundled package offering features typically out of reach for smaller enterprise customers. “We’ve always offered our solutions to a wide spectrum
of customers,” said Rob LaMagna-Reiter, chief information security officer. “Smaller companies typically don’t have many resources dedicated to specific areas of concern such as a larger organization would. If we can package a bundle that solves the many challenges small and medium businesses face specifically for IT security, Continued on page 22.
From left, Nonprofit Association of the Midlands’ Hannah Young, policy and events manager, and Rosey Higgs, program manager. (File photo)
In the thick of COVID-19, Midlands organizations persist and evolve by Michelle Leach
President Kim Whittaker … Deploying product targeting IT security needs specific to small- and medium-sized businesses. (photo courtesy of FNTS)
Editor’s note: This is the first in a series of articles sharing first-hand experiences from local organizations on how their respective industries are adapting to COVID-19. Before and since the coronavirus (COVID-19) was declared a national emergency on March 13, Midlands organizations have been adapting and persisting despite seemingly constant change and uncertainty.
In a March 17 message, 18year industry veteran agent, Jenn Bennett, communicated that Berkshire Hathaway HomeServices Ambassador Real Estate was “still open for business” and assured “the real estate market remains stable and consistent.” “Most people are looking for some positive information,” Bennett said. “This is not ‘doomsday.’” She referenced a corporateContinued on page 22.