Funding Circle, an online small business lending platform, and Farm Bureau Bank, a financial institution focused on serving members of the Farm Bureau and their neighbors in rural communities, formed a partnership to provide capital to small business owners from all walks of life, including the agricultural community, across the United States.

The partnership enables Farm Bureau Bank to purchase loans originated through Funding Circle, marking another step forward in a growing collaboration between Funding Circle and the banking community. The partnership combines the financial strength and longstanding client relationships of Farm Bureau Bank with the risk models powered by Funding Circle’s world-class machine learning and technology platform to deliver high-quality loan products to small business owners.

“Our work with Farm Bureau Bank reflects our ongoing commitment to identifying and pursuing partnerships that allow us to support affordable funding options for diverse small business owners across a variety of sectors and needs,” Vipul Chhabra, managing director of Funding Circle U.S., said. “We are excited about the positive impact this partnership will have on small business owners in communities throughout the country who play a critical role in supporting their local economies.”

The collaboration between Funding Circle and Farm Bureau Bank will help mitigate the challenges that many small business owners face when seeking access to working capital for their business. While Farm Bureau Bank has traditionally focused on serving rural communities, its partnership with Funding Circle will allow the bank to fund loans for small businesses across the country and all industries.

“For over 20 years, we have remained committed to providing banking services and support to Farm Bureau members in rural America and across the country. We are enhancing our commercial banking services to better support the financial needs of business owners throughout the communities our members live in,” Will Hileman, president and CEO of Farm Bureau Bank, said. “Access to Funding Circle’s loans allows us to strengthen our investments in local communities by broadening the funding opportunities available to entrepreneurs and small business owners across the US.”