First Bank (Missouri)
At a Glance
A desk written for funds, so a searcher's approach comes through their investors, and it is one of the few here that says how large a facility it will write.
- Pricing
- Custom Pricing, Loan products; terms by term sheet. The page publishes the EBITDA floor, the margin test and the $30 million facility ceiling, and no rates (per first.bank, September 2026).
- Best For
- A buyer with a committed capital provider behind them and a company past two million of EBITDA who wants a bank that publishes its facility ceiling
- Track Record
- A family-owned Missouri Preferred Lender with a sponsor finance group structuring facilities to $30 million.
- Type
- Bank (lends directly)
- Footprint
- A family-owned bank whose footer names clients in Missouri, California and Illinois, with no lending area published as such. It publishes a region rather than a state list, so ask on the first call whether it lends where you are buying.
- Its commercial pages are titled for Missouri, Illinois and California, which is where its branches are, and the sponsor desk says U.S.-based companies; no page states where the 7(a) is written, so the three states are a title and not a list.
- Approval Authority
- Says it holds SBA Preferred Lender status, so it can approve the loan itself rather than sending the file to the agency for a second look.
- The SBA loans hub says work with an SBA Preferred Lender in its own heading, and the 7(a) page says that as a Preferred Lender it can streamline the process and get funds to you faster.
- Deal Size
- $500k and up, past the single-loan 7(a) cap.
- Lends conventionally on this product, so no 7(a) cap applies.
- States a floor: the smallest loan it publishes is $50k.
- The 7(a) page states it: loan amounts range from $50,000 to $5 million. The floor is on the product page itself, beside the term and the uses.
- Searcher Practice
- A general SBA lending desk, branch-driven.
- A Request Info button on the sponsor page and Schedule an Appointment and Contact Us on the SBA pages; nothing says apply online for the 7(a), so the flag follows the contact path.
- The site names no page for a search fund or a searcher; the 7(a) page lists business acquisition among common loan uses.
- Published Terms
- 7(a) from $50,000 to $5 million with terms to 20 years; the desk above the cap starts at $2 million of EBITDA.
- Past the SBA Cap
- Sponsor Finance Group: EBITDA greater than $2MM, with an EBITDA margin exceeding 10%. Credit facilities up to $30 million, including revolving lines, term loans, capex loans and real estate.
- Who the Desk Says It Lends To
- Private equity firms, mezzanine lenders, and other capital providers.
- U.S.-based companies; the bank itself is in Missouri, Illinois and California.
- Roadmap Stages
- 5. Diligence & Close the Deal
Pros and Cons
Pros
- A published facility ceiling of $30 million
- Lends to U.S.-based companies rather than a home region, by its own page
- Names the products inside a facility, revolving lines, term loans, capex loans and real estate
- A single point of contact through the life of the investment, by its own page
- An SBA Preferred Lender whose 7(a) page publishes a floor, $50,000, and a ceiling of $5 million
Cons
- Addresses private equity firms and capital providers and names no independent sponsor, family office or search fund
- Requires an EBITDA margin above 10%, a test the other desks do not publish
What Searchers Say
The bank describes itself as family-owned for over a hundred years and describes Small Business Investment Company investment relationships. No searcher-forum discussion of the desk was found.
How to Approach
First Bank (Missouri) is a bank, so this is how that kind of lender comes in, what it weighs, and how to arrive ready.
The Typical Arc
- A prequalification on you and the target, often from the first email.
- A full application and the bank's own underwrite of the deal.
- A term sheet, then closing on the SBA's timeline, commonly two to four months.
What It Weighs
- Whether the business's cash flow covers the debt with room to spare.
- Your experience relative to the business you are buying.
- Your equity injection and how clean the financials are.
How to Prepare
- Model the payment and coverage before you call. SBA Acquisition Calculator
- Underwrite the specific deal end to end. Underwrite a Deal
- Show where every dollar comes from and goes. Sources & Uses Builder