The Small Business Administration supported more than $22 billion in loans through its two largest programs in fiscal 2010, a 29% increase over the previous fiscal year, the agency said Monday.
The rebound in SBA lending was driven primarily by loan enhancements put in place by last year's stimulus act, SBA Administrator Karen Mills said in a press release. The measures — including fee reductions and higher loan guarantees — were extended last week by the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010. "The success of these loan enhancements has meant tens of thousands of small businesses have been able to get the capital they needed to not just survive the recession, but to grow and create much-needed jobs in communities all across the country," Mills said.
The SBA made 54,833 loans through its 7(a) and 504 loan programs in fiscal 2010, compared with 47,897 loans in fiscal 2009. The average weekly loan volume was $333 million, a 29% increase over the average weekly loan volume of $258 million in the previous fiscal year.
The highest loan volume in a single month in fiscal 2010 was in November 2009, with $2.18 billion in loans.
