Why middle market businesses are growing more optimistic

Middle market businesses don’t get the attention of the Fortune 500 or the love that small businesses get from policymakers, but these firms are still critical to the economy — accounting for a third of private-sector GDP and employing up to 50 million Americans. On the latest episode of the ABA Banking Journal Podcast — sponsored by Agri-Access — KeyBank commercial bank president Ken Gavrity discusses the outlook for the middle market, defined as businesses with annual revenues of $10 million to $1 billion. Among other topics, Gavrity discusses:

• Why middle market business leaders have grown more positive this fall about the outlook.
• How middle market firms’ cost control and resilience-building during the inflationary period position them well as rates begin to come down.
• The improvement in the talent outlook for middle market firms.
• How middle market businesses are prepared to capitalize on the efficiencies, including automation and AI, that they instilled in the past few years.
• How KeyBank integrates its commercial payments business with its middle market services.

This episode is presented by Agri-Access.