The U.S. Small Business Administration announced on Thursday its most active surety companies and agencies for 2019 list, and two from New Jersey were included in the Top 10.
“The SBA Atlantic Region is fortunate to have outstanding surety and agent partners joining us to help small businesses start, grow and expand. Navigators Insurance Co. of Iselin and KOG International of West Berlin, have both demonstrated a high-level of commitment to assisting entrepreneurs throughout the region. It’s for that reason our agency has recognized their high activity in helping small business owners and job creators grow our economy,” Steve Bulger, SBA Atlantic regional administrator, said.
The top active surety agencies helped contribute increases in the Surety Bond Guarantee Program, the SBA said, which provides surety bond guarantees for small business on federal, state, local and private projects. In 2019, the SBA’s guaranteed bid and final bonds were more than $6.4 billion in total, assisting more than 1,900 small businesses and supporting over 30,000 jobs.
The rankings were determined by the number of bond guarantees each company wrote through the SGB Program, said Al Titone, New Jersey district director for the SBA.
“The bottom line is that SBA guarantees on bid, payment and performance bonds issued by surety partners and agents are providing small and underserved businesses with increased contracting opportunities,” added Titone. “More contracting opportunities mean more jobs and economic growth for our area. Having an 80% to 90% guarantee from the SBA is incentive for sureties to write bonds for small businesses who do not otherwise meet their minimum standards. It’s just a great program for fledgling contractors who need a chance to build a portfolio of work on private, municipal, state and federal contracting projects.”
The Top 10 surety partners for FY 2019:
- American Contractors Indemnity Co., California;
- United States Fire Insurance Co., Pennsylvania;
- U. S. Specialty Insurance Co., California;
- Travelers Casualty & Surety Co., Connecticut;
- United States Surety Co., Maryland;
- Markel Insurance Co., Texas;
- Developers Surety & Indemnity Co., California;
- Contractors Bonding and Insurance Co., Washinton;
- Navigators Insurance Co., Iselin, New Jersey;
- The Guarantee Company of North America, Michigan.
The Top 10 bond agencies for FY 2019:
- CCI Surety Inc., Minnesota;
- KOG International Inc., West Berlin, New Jersey;
- Nielson, Hoover and Co., Florida;
- The Fedeli Group, Ohio;
- Valley Surety Insurance Agency, California;
- Preferred Bonding & Insurance Services, California;
- Pinnacle Surety & Insurance Services Inc., California;
- The Surety Place, Arizona;
- Brunswick Companies, Ohio;
- Capstone Brokerage Inc., Nevada.
