Small Business Loan Approval Rates at Banks Rose in July 2020: Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index™

Improvement in Approval Percentages at Banks and Institutional Lenders for Companies Applying for Non-PPP Loans, While Alternative Lenders and Credit Unions Slip

Small business leading

Biz2Credit Small Business Leading IndexTM

Small Business Loan Approval Rates at Banks Rose in July 2020

Big Banks

Big Banks

The approval percentage for small business loan applications at big banks ($10 billion+ in assets) rose three-tenths of a percent from 13.5% in June to 13.8% in July, according to the Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index™ released today. The figures do not reflect approval of Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans, which are made by the government, rather than by the banks themselves. However, the July figure shows an upward trend, even though approval rates are still far below the record highs earlier in 2020 before the coronavirus pandemic hit. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics’ Jobs Report on August 7 found that nonfarm payroll employment rose by 1.8 million in July, while the unemployment rate fell to 10.2%. The improvements in the labor market reflected the continued resumption of economic activity that was curtailed due to the COVID-19 pandemic and efforts to contain it. July’s notable job gains occurred in the leisure and hospitality, government, retail trade, business and professional services, and health care sectors. Many of those jobs are created by small businesses.

March 2020
15.4%
April 2020
8.9%

Monthly Comparison

April 2019
27.5%
April 2020
8.9%

Yearly Comparison

“There was clearly an uptick in the economy, especially in the northeast in July,” said Biz2Credit CEO Rohit Arora, who oversees the monthly research. “The big banks played a key role in PPP lending and are making other loans to their customers as some of them have exhausted their PPP funds” “It will be interesting to follow lending at big banks as coronavirus spreads through the south and west regions of the country,” added Arora, one of the nation’s leading experts in small business lending.

Rohit Arora

Rohit Arora, Biz2Credit CEO

Small Banks

Small Banks

The approval rate at small banks was 18.6% in July, up two-tenths of a percent to from 18.4% in June. This figure is in stark contrast with February 2020, when small business loan approvals were a robust 50.3%. Overall, the PPP lending program has provided nearly 5 million small businesses with more than $521 billion in potentially forgivable loans, directly ensuring 50 million American workers kept their jobs, according to a report by the SBA. The average loan size was $106,772, and 5,460 lenders participated in the program thus far. Congress passed legislation that was later signed by President Trump.

March 2020
38.9%
April 2020
11.8%

Monthly Comparison

April 2019
49.8%
April 2020
11.8%

Yearly Comparison

“Regional and community banks made a lot of PPP loans to small businesses and are now making other types of loans to these new customers,” Arora said. “The smaller banks are now in a good position to resume making SBA 7(a) loans and other funding requests.”

Rohit Arora

Rohit Arora, Biz2Credit CEO

Institutional lenders

Institutional lenders

Institutional lenders’ approval percentages increased to 21.9% in July, up from 21.6% in June.

March 2020
41.2%
April 2020
18.1%

Monthly Comparison

April 2019
65.3%
April 2020
18.1%

Yearly Comparison

“Institutional lenders, like the other types of lenders, are steadily climbing back after disastrous results in March and April,” Arora said. “They continue to play a strong role in small business lending.”

Rohit Arora

Rohit Arora, Biz2Credit CEO

Alternative lenders

Alternative lenders

Loan approval rates among alternative lenders dropped three-tenths of a percent to 23.1%, down from 23.4% in June.

March 2020
30.4%
April 2020
15.2%

Monthly Comparison

April 2019
57.2%
April 2020
15.2%

Yearly Comparison

“Alternative lenders are struggling right now, some of them are not doing much lending. The numbers show it,” Arora said.

Rohit Arora

Rohit Arora, Biz2Credit CEO

Credit unions

Credit unions

Credit unions approved 21.2% of loan requests in July, a slight drop from 21.35% in June, a slight increase 21.2% in May 2020.

March 2020
23.2%
April 2020
18.1%

Monthly Comparison

April 2019
40.1%
April 2020
18.1%

Yearly Comparison

“Credit unions are grappling and trying to get back in lending,” Arora said. “Many of them still lag in technology, and they struggle to keep up with other categories of lenders.

Rohit Arora

Rohit Arora, Biz2Credit CEO

View Past Months

Access Archives

October 2023

Small Business Loan Approvals Dropped at Big Banks, Rose at Small Banks and Alternative Lenders in October 2023: Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index™

Loan approval rates at institutional investors and alternative lenders increase for 10th consecutive month, while credit union approval rate returns to all-time Index low.

View Report
September 2023

Small Business Loan Approvals Slid at Big Banks, Rose at Other Lenders in September: Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index™

Loan approval percentages rose at regional and community banks and non-bank lenders.

View Report
August 2023

Business Loan Approvals at Big Banks and Credit Unions Continued to Slide in August: Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index™

Big bank lending to small businesses has stalled for over a year, while credit unions return to an all-time low. Loan approval percentages rose at regional and community banks and non-bank lenders.

View Report
July 2023

Business Loan Approvals at Big Banks Continue to Drop, While Other Lenders Increased in July: Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index™

Big bank approvals have declined steadily over the past 12 months. Approval percentages rose at small banks, institutional investors, and alternative lenders in July 2023.

View Report

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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