The bank made 4,273 loans to businesses with annual revenues of less than $1 million, according to data tracked by the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council. The loans totaled $105.4 million. They averaged $24,669.

Rounding out the top five lenders were:

* Zions First National Bank: 686 loans, $76.5 million total, $24,669 average;

* KeyBank: 157 loans, $23.2 million total, $147,631 average;

* US Bank: 617 loans, $23.1 million total, $37,389 average;

* Advanta Bank: 1,410 loans, $13.0 million total, $3,130 average.

Wells Fargo was also the No. 1 small-business lender in Utah and the United States last year, according to the San Francisco-based bank.

In Utah, Wells Fargo extended more than $348 million in loan amounts under $100,000. The loans went to 14,700 small businesses.

Nationally, the bank loaned $18 billion to small-business owners.

"These lending results demonstrate our strong commitment to small businesses throughout the state," said Robert Hatch, CEO of Wells Fargo Utah.

Small businesses with fewer than 500 employees account for half of private sector economic output, employ more than half of private sector workers and generate more than 60 percent of all new jobs annually, according to the federal reserve.

pbeebe@sltrib.com