M&T Bank Corp. is leading the Small Business Administration lending charge locally nine months into the federal agency’s fiscal year, but second-place Five Star Bank is aggressively catching up.

As of the end of June, Buffalobased M&T had made 149 loans in the Buffalo and Rochester markets under the SBA’s flagship 7(a) program, totaling $19.12 million. That’s nearly four times the dollar volume of the No. 2 lender, Warsaw-based Five Star, with $5.5 million.

But Five Star is gaining ground in the number of loans, at 111, putting it closer to M&T and well-ahead of No. 3 lender First Niagara Financial Group of Lockport, with 64 loans for $4.57 million. Coming in fourth is HSBC Bank USA, with 39 loans for $3.07 million.

Citizens Financial Group of Providence, R. I., owned by Royal Bank of Scotland Group and the British government, is fifth in number of loans, with 19, but lags in dollars at just $939,900. Lyons National Bank is fifth in dollars, with $2.48 million, in just five loans.

In all, 24 lenders made 467 loans for $50 million in the two cities from October 2008 through June 2009, all through the 7(a) program.

Additionally, 11 lenders made 33 loans under the 504 program for real estate loans, totaling $18.51 million, with M&T and Canandaigua National Bank & Trust Co. tied for first place with 7 loans apiece. Canandaigua’s volume was $6.1 million, while M&T had $3.16 million.

Thirteen lenders also made 44 loans to veteran-owned businesses for $4.9 million. M&T had 8 loans for $1.4 million, ranking it first in dollars, but Five Star had the most veteran business loans, at 11.