14 min

Getting a loan: what a lender looks at

A lender asks one question five ways: will you pay it back? Here's how they check, the ratio they work out, and how to walk in with the answers.

Ticket 01 · The guess

Where do small businesses get a yes?

Sources and every number (2)

Sources

Every number

57%fedsmallbusiness.org ·2025 · Of firms that applied for financing at a small bank, the share that got all they asked for. Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey of employer firms, fielded in late 2025, about the prior twelve months.
38%fedsmallbusiness.org ·2025 · Share of firms that applied for a loan, a line of credit or a merchant cash advance. Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey of employer firms, fielded in late 2025, about the prior twelve months.
48%fedsmallbusiness.org ·2025 · Share of firms five years old or younger that applied for a loan, line of credit or cash advance and got all they asked for. Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey of employer firms, fielded in late 2025, about the prior twelve months.
63%fedsmallbusiness.org ·2025 · Share of firms twenty-one years old or older that applied for a loan, line of credit or cash advance and got all they asked for. Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey of employer firms, fielded in late 2025, about the prior twelve months.

14 min

A lender asks one question five ways: will you pay it back? Here's how they check, the ratio they work out, and how to walk in with the answers.

Ticket 01 · The guess

Sources and every number (2)

Sources

Every number

57%fedsmallbusiness.org ·2025 · Of firms that applied for financing at a small bank, the share that got all they asked for. Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey of employer firms, fielded in late 2025, about the prior twelve months.
38%fedsmallbusiness.org ·2025 · Share of firms that applied for a loan, a line of credit or a merchant cash advance. Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey of employer firms, fielded in late 2025, about the prior twelve months.
48%fedsmallbusiness.org ·2025 · Share of firms five years old or younger that applied for a loan, line of credit or cash advance and got all they asked for. Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey of employer firms, fielded in late 2025, about the prior twelve months.
63%fedsmallbusiness.org ·2025 · Share of firms twenty-one years old or older that applied for a loan, line of credit or cash advance and got all they asked for. Federal Reserve Banks' Small Business Credit Survey of employer firms, fielded in late 2025, about the prior twelve months.