The Kelly, Khayum, and Price paper notes that there has been more emphasis in recent years on the challenges facing community banks than on the opportunities available to them.
Given the success that community banks have enjoyed in lending to small businesses, this paper explores the possibility that these institutions could expand their involvement in business equipment leasing, a potential growth area that community banks might want to investigate. The authors find that community banks that are actively involved in lease financing are more profitable and efficient than other community banks.