Big Banks Boost Lending to Small Businesses: Survey

by Brian Browdie

FEB 7, 2013 3:39pm ET

Big banks are showing a growing appetite for loans to small businesses.

Banks with at least $10 billion in assets approved 15.3% of loans between $25,000 and $3 million in January, up from 14.9% in December and from 11.7% a year earlier, according to an index published Thursday by Biz2Credit, which connects small and mid-size business borrowers with lenders.

"It appears that big banks are back into small-business lending," Rohit Arora, Biz2Credit's chief executive, said in a news release. "They are lending again, and this is how it should be."

The loan approval rate by small banks rose to 49.9% in January, up slightly from December, while approvals by credit unions slipped for the eighth consecutive month, to 46.9%.

Approvals by Community Development Financial Institutions and other nonbank lenders fell in January to 63.7%, compared with 63.8% a month earlier.

The Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index reflects an analysis of roughly 1,000 loan applications each month on Biz2Credit.com.

Comments (1)

It's great news to hear that some small businesses are having more success in securing funding! Small businesses hold the key to help to improve the economy, which is why initiatives such as small busines Saturday are such a great idea. We should certainly be supporting these businesses, so these figures are promising. Although I do believe we should be more aware of alternative funding options rather than the bank loan.

Melanie
Capiota

Posted by MelanieUp | Thursday, February 21 2013 at 6:17AM ET

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