Bruce is a former California state politician with nearly four decades of legislative and government experience. He was appointed by President George W. Bush as the Region IX Administrator for the U.S. Small Business Administration from 2001 to 2009. Since Bruce joined American Lending Center in 2011, he has led this non-bank lender to be one of the most productive and successful SBA 504 first loan lenders in the U.S.
Bruce Thompson
President Emeritus
John founded American Lending Center in June 2009. As a passionate small business advocate, John spearheaded the effort of the organization to build a successful lending practice primarily based on the SBA 504 program. In October 2017, John received the Coleman Report’s “SBA 504 Lender of the Year Award” for his outstanding leadership and contributions to small business community.
John Shen
Chief Executive Officer
Stella joined American Lending Center as the COO in 2011. Upon arrival, she immediately built a successful small business lending team and has led to the steady growth of the lending practice. Her team manages a dynamic portfolio of over $200 million dollars of senior loans consisting almost entirely of loans on SBA approved projects. In 2017, Stella won the Coleman Emerging Leader Award from the prestigious SBA media outlet, the Coleman Report.
Stella Zhang
Chief Operating Officer
Leo co-founded American Lending Center in June 2009 with John Shen. Leo had over 10 years of working experience focus in private banking and small business financing at a Top 3 US Banks before he jointly ventured American Lending Center LLC. Leo had won four times of annual Top 10 performer at the employing bank and has been an active advocate for US small business community.
Leo Zhou
Co-founder
Scott has been an advocate for small business owners for over 15 years. As Chief Lending Officer at American Lending Center, Scott plays an active role in managing the origination, underwriting and servicing of small business loans. This includes ALC’s extensive portfolio of over 28,000 Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans across all 50 states.
Scott Thompson
VP, Chief Lending Officer
Jim serves as the lender service provider for ALC assisting them with their government guaranteed lending. Jim is the president of sbfdoc.org, the Small Business Development Corporation of Orange County, which provides loan guarantees through the state of California Infrastructure and Economic Development Bank. Jim is also the Vice Chairman of California International Bank. Jim is also very active in the SBA lending community. In 1984 Jim started doing SBA loans and now owns sbapro.com which helps banks and borrowers participate in the SBA 7(a) loan program. In 2015 Jim was recognized by the US Small Business Administration as their Financial Services Champion of the Year.
Jim Ely
Senior Advisor
Mr. Trujillo is a thoughtful ex-banker, entrepreneur, advisor, and judicious problem solver with specialized domestic and international expertise in developing and cultivating collaborative relationships. Immediately prior to joining ALC as Senior Advisor in 2020, his commitment to fair and equitable access to credit and economic development led him to serve in the US Small Business Administration (SBA) in various roles including national Director of Financial Oversight for the Office of Small Business Development Centers; Equal Employment Opportunity (EEO) Advisor for the Office of Diversity, Inclusion, and Civil Rights;.Director of Lender Relations; and District International Trade Officer.
Larry Trujillo
Senior Advisor
As the founding member and partner of Blackhall, P.C., Justin joined American Lending Center in 2015. His experience in handling complex financing transactions, risk management, and lending compliance has made him a solid leader in small business lending industry. His efforts significantly streamlined the efficiency and improved the profitability of American Lending Center and turned it into a true pioneer of lending with a creative capital structure.
Justin Blackhall
Finance Counsel
Scott is an economist with 15 years of experience working with consulting, research, and financial institutions. Scott joined American Lending Center in 2014, where he has overseen rapid growth of the loan portfolio while ensuring strict regulatory and lending requirements. Prior, Scott worked with the US Department of Homeland Security to modernize its EB-5 investment-for-immigration program. Scott is also the founding member of Wagner Consulting Group, an economic advisory firm.
Gregory Scott Wagner
Economist