The U.S. Small Business Administration’s (SBA) lending report for fiscal 2017 saw more loans with lower dollar amounts in Delaware. The
The loans helped to create or retain more than 1,346 jobs in the state, the Delaware SBA office reported.
During the 2017 fiscal year, SBA backed $52.9 million in Delaware loans, guaranteeing 178 loans in total. This is a five percent increase from the agency’s FY2016 Delaware loan volume of 170 loans and a 23 percent decrease in dollars lent, down from $69.3 million in fiscal 2016.
“Of particular note, there was a significant decrease in average SBA loan size in Delaware in FY2017 compared to FY2016, with SBA loans in Delaware in FY2016 averaging over $400,000 per loan and SBA loans in Delaware in FY2017 averaging approximately $280,000 per loan,” said SBA Delaware Director John Fleming. “We know that there are a number of lenders that have made a concerted effort to make smaller loans in Delaware, increasing the flow of capital to smaller businesses in the First State. We are fortunate to have a great group of SBA certified banks and credit unions that step up and meet the capital needs of the Delaware small business community.”
In fiscal 2017, 31, lending institutions participated in SBA lending programs, an increase from previous years.
In fiscal 2017 M&T Bank continued to set the pace for the number of SBA loans in Delaware with 44 7(a) loans – which businesses can use for many purposes to start or expand. M&T was followed closely by TD Bank with 38 loans. First Financial Bank generated the most dollars lent to Delaware small businesses under SBA loan programs, with an SBA lending total of $8.4 million in fiscal 2017.
The SBA program guarantees a portion of loans made by private lenders for businesses that might not otherwise meet lending guidelines.
SBA loans have been used to help grow some of the nation’s largest companies in their early stages.
The SBA has been criticized in the past for putting to great an emphasis on larger loans to entities that some suspect might have been able to get financing elsewhere.
In recent years, the emphasis, at least in Delaware, has been on smaller loans.
Also a possible factor was a greater willingness by banks to offer larger small businesses loans outside of the SBA system.
