First Financial Bank: SBA Lending Profile
First Financial Bank is an FDIC-insured bank, headquartered in El Dorado, AR. It is a national lender, with SBA loans on record in 47 states and territories. Everything below comes from federal SBA loan records, not from the lender's marketing. This is what it has actually funded.
Loan sizes First Financial Bank actually approves
The median SBA approval at First Financial Bank is $589,500. The middle 80% of its loans fall between $78,200 and $2,295,100. The smallest funded approval in the available source window is $13,000 and the largest is $5,000,000. If the amount you need sits far outside that range, this is probably not the right first call, no matter what the website says.
Programs
| Program | Loans FY25-26 | Median size | Median rate | Median term |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SBA 7(a) | 298 | $590K | 7.5% | 10 years |
| 504 first mortgage (third party) | 29 | $484K | n/a | 20 years |
Industries it funds most
| Industry | Funded loans in source data | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Broilers and Other Meat Type Chicken Production | 301 | 28.1% |
| Pet Care (except Veterinary) Services | 107 | 10% |
| Pharmacies and Drug Retailers | 106 | 9.9% |
| Other Poultry Production | 74 | 6.9% |
| Pharmacies and Drug Stores | 54 | 5% |
| Veterinary Services | 33 | 3.1% |
| General Freight Trucking, Local | 20 | 1.9% |
| Offices of Dentists | 11 | 1% |
| Home Health Care Services | 10 | 0.9% |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers | 10 | 0.9% |
| Full-Service Restaurants | 10 | 0.9% |
| Hobby, Toy, and Game Retailers | 9 | 0.8% |
How fast First Financial Bank actually funds
Approval is not money in the bank. Across 983 loans where both dates are on record, the typical gap between SBA approval and first disbursement at First Financial Bank is 20 days. Half its loans fund between 10 and 41 days. The typical SBA lender takes about 20 days, so this is roughly in line with the market.
Lending momentum
First Financial Bank has held its SBA volume roughly steady from FY2023 to FY2025, a sign of a consistent, established program.
Funded approvals by SBA fiscal year (October to September). FY2026 is excluded because it is still in progress.
Borrower profile
- 31.4% of its funded SBA records with known business age went to startups or businesses under two years old.
- Collateral was taken on 97.2% of its recent SBA loans.
- 44.6% of its loans carry fixed rates; the rest are variable.
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Sources and limits. Figures are derived from U.S. Small Business Administration 7(a) and 504 FOIA loan-level records (data as of 2026-06-30, retrieved 2026-08-08) and FDIC public institution data. Funding speed is the median gap between approval date and first disbursement date in SBA records. Some lenders report disbursement at month end, which can round the figure upward. They describe past lending activity only. They are not rate quotes, not current offers, and not an indication that any business will qualify. Lender programs and criteria change. Big Brain Funding is not affiliated with or endorsed by First Financial Bank.