Small business lending

The Fed's Basel endgame draft rule would restrict access to capital and credit on Main Street.

Banks are perfectly willing to comply with a reasonable data collection standard. The problem is that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's final rule makes demands far in excess of what the law requires.

The passage of a Congressional Review Act resolution to rescind the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau's small-business data collection rule may be only symbolic, but the rule is designed to detect and stop discrimination — something everyone should support.

Rep. Maxine Waters pressed executives from City National Bank, PNC Financial Services and Wells Fargo on opening branches in her California district and upholding promises made from recent merger agreements or consent orders.

Republicans and a handful of Democrats in the House and Senate, which already had passed an identical bill, say the data-collection rule would be too onerous for lenders and small-business borrowers. President Biden is expected to veto the legislation.

The seller, Merchants and Manufacturers Bank in Illinois, has experienced rapid growth and zero lifetime losses in its niche portfolio. First Busey says that business line was a key reason it decided to buy its in-state peer.

A key gauge of activity that tracks startups most likely to create jobs declined in October, potentially signaling the start of a slowdown after the rapid increase in interest rates. It presents a red flag for community banks and credit unions that are major lenders to small businesses.

Since the end of the Small Business Administration's 2022 fiscal year, the average loan size in its flagship program has dropped more than six figures. The addition of three new nondepository lenders could further drive down this figure.

Small Business Administration lending is an arena where community banks and nonbanks compete favorably with some of the largest U.S. financial institutions. Here are the biggest SBA 7(a) lenders based on the value of approved loans.

Small business clients are important to financial institutions and expected to drive growth. But to achieve that, banks must teach them to be stronger consumers.