Banks Are Approving Small Business Loans at Rates Not Seen Since Before The Great Recession

Approvals of loan applications from small business owners reached post-recession high mark (26.9%) at big banks (assets of $10 billion+), while small banks granted more than half of the small business funding requests they received in November 2018, according to the latest Biz2Credit Small Business Lending Index™. Overall, 2018 has been a good year for both borrowers and small business lenders. Because the economy continues to show strength and companies are doing well, small businesses in search of capital have been able to find it. For good reason, optimism among entrepreneurs remains high, according to the October NFIB Small Business Optimism Index, which has trended upward for the past two years. Meanwhile, the Fed has continuously raised interest rates over the past 18 months. While there are signs that the increases may slow down, the hikes have made it more profitable for banks to loan money – especially when compared to the near zero interest rates that were in place during the post-recession credit crunch.