Small Business Lending IndexsuperscriptstartTMsuperscruptend January 2016

Institutional Lenders and Alternative Lenders Capitalize on Slow Month for Mainstream Financial Institutions

Loan approval rates at both big banks and small banks dropped in January 2016, according to the Biz2Credit Small Business Lending IndexsuperscriptstartTMsuperscruptend, the monthly analysis of more than 1,000 small business loan applications on Biz2Credit.com. Additionally, loan approval percentages at credit unions fell to an all-time Index low. Meanwhile, institutional lenders and alternative lenders experienced an uptick in loan approval rates. "The turbulence in the stock market and plummeting oil prices in the last month have resulted in a level of uncertainty for lenders," who oversaw the research. "While the demand for small business loans held up, the approval standards tightened."