Loan Approval Rates at Big Banks Reached New Post-Recession High in July 2017, According to Biz2Credit Small Business Lending IndexsuperscriptstartTMsuperscruptend

Lending Drops by Alternative Lenders Significantly

Loan approval rates at big banks ($10 billion-plus in assets) increased to post-recession high in July 2017, according to the latest Biz2Credit Small Business Lending IndexsuperscriptstartTMsuperscruptend , the monthly analysis of more than 1,000 small business loan applications on ahrefstartBiz2Credit.comahrefend. Loan approval percentages of institutional investors also set a new record. Meanwhile, alternative lenders and credit unions experienced declines in the percentages of funding requests they approved.

Big Banks

Big Banks

Just as they had done the previous month, small business loan approval rates at big banks improved two-tenths of a percent to 24.5% in July, setting an all-time Index high.

Aug 2018
26.5%
Sep 2018
26.7%

Monthly Comparison

Aug 2018
26.5%
Sep 2018
26.7%

Yearly Comparison

"Despite the drama surrounding President Trump, the markets are performing well, and the Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes have not dampened the appetite for small business funding,"

Rohit Arora

Rohit Arora, Biz2Credit CEO

Economy

"Overall, I would say that bank lending is stronger now than at any other time since before the Great Recession."

Rohit Arora

Rohit Arora, Biz2Credit CEO

Small Banks

Small Banks

Loan approval rates at small banks also rose two-tenths of a percent in July to 48.9%, up from June's 48.7% figure.

Jul 2018
49.7%
Aug 2018
49.8%

Monthly Comparison

Aug 2017
49%
Aug 2018
49.8%

Yearly Comparison

"Despite the drama surrounding President Trump, the markets are performing well, and the Federal Reserve's interest rate hikes have not dampened the appetite for small business funding," . who oversaw the research. "Overall, I would say that bank lending is stronger now than at any other time since before the Great Recession."

Rohit Arora

Rohit Arora, Biz2Credit CEO

Institutional lenders

Institutional lenders

Institutional lenders' loan approval rates in July creeped up one-tenth of a percent to 63.9%, a new all-time high for the Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index.

Jul 2018
64.8%
Aug 2018
64.9%

Monthly Comparison

Jul 2018
63.9%
Aug 2018
64.9%

Yearly Comparison

"The dollar is strong, the Dow Jones reached a new high, and the U.S. economy is solid. These factors are attractive for global investors, and they see opportunity in the small business lending space," added Arora, one of the country's leading experts in small business finance.

Rohit Arora

Rohit Arora, Biz2Credit CEO

Alternative lenders

Alternative lenders

Loan approval rates among alternative lenders continue to plummet; approval rates dropped three-tenths of a percent in July to 57.2%. Approval percentages have dropped every month for more than a year.

Jul 2018
56.5%
Aug 2018
56.6%

Monthly Comparison

Aug 2017
57.1%
Aug 2018
56.6%

Yearly Comparison

"Alternative lenders do play a key role in small business lending. They are a source of funding for borrowers who have had some financial difficulties or perhaps have little to no credit history at all,". "Alternative lenders are willing to accept the greater risk that comes with less creditworthy borrowers. While there has been consolidation in this category and they are a less attractive option for small business owners, alternative lenders still play an important in small business lending."

Rohit Arora

Rohit Arora, Biz2Credit CEO

Credit unions

Credit unions

Loan approval rates at credit unions remained at 40.4% for the second consecutive month, equaling the low point for this category of funders on Biz2Credit's index.

Jul 2018
40.3%
Aug 2018
40.2%

Monthly Comparison

Aug 2017
40.3%
Aug 2018
40.2%

Yearly Comparison

"Credit unions cannot keep pace with the banks and other non-bank lenders who have invested in technology and sped up the small business loan-making process," Arora said. "This is an ongoing problem for many credit unions, which are losing their relevance in small business lending."

Rohit Arora

Rohit Arora, Biz2Credit CEO

View Past Months

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About Biz2Credit Small Business Lending IndexTM

The Biz2Credit Small Business Lending IndexTM is an analysis of 1,000 monthly loan applications on the Biz2Credit website. The Index reports the loan approval rates of small business financing requests at Big Banks ($10 billion+ in assets), local and regional banks and non-bank lenders (credit unions, Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI), micro lenders, and others).

Unlike other surveys, the results are based on primary data submitted by more than 1,000 entrepreneurs who applied for funding on Biz2Credit's online lending platform, which connects small business borrowers with sources of capital.

Results of the Biz2Credit Small Business Lending IndexTM have been reported by The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg BusinessWeek, Entrepreneur.com, Bloomberg Radio's "The Hays Advantage", SBA Radio, NY Daily News, Crain's NY Business, Michigan Banker, and other media.

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