PORTFOLIO Chad King, director of business services at First State Community Bank, works with Alycia Burgess, a bank customer and small business owner. Tapping into small business cards' potential 26 Q ICBA Independent Banker Q December 2019 Payments Research shows that use of dedicated small business credit cards is set for huge growth in the next few years, but what value do they offer community banks? By Colleen Morrison magine a relatively untapped market with the potential to balloon to $700 billion by 2022. According to Mercator Advisory Group, this may be the reality for small business credit card offerings. I This emerging opportunity opens the door for community banks, which already dole out more than 60% of all small business loans. In fact, only 3.3% of all businesses with fewer than 500 employees-99.7% of all employer firms in the U.S.-currently seek business credit cards to expand their organizations. With numbers like that, the potential for market growth is substantial. Photo: Megan Roussin