SBA: New 7(a) Equity Flexibility Established for Veterans’ Small Business Acquisitions
Flexible Financing Option Eliminates Personal Equity Requirement Today, on the first day of National Veterans Small Business Week, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced a major policy reform designed to make it easier for military veterans to buy a small business. Beginning this Veterans Day, the SBA is implementing new flexibility for veteran entrepreneurs who are…
FFIEC: Federal Bank Regulatory Agencies Release 2025 Small Business, Small Farm and Community Development Lending Data
The federal bank regulatory agencies, as members of the Federal Financial Institutions Examination Council (FFIEC), today released data on small business, small farm, and community development lending during 2025. The Community Reinvestment Act regulations require the agencies to annually disclose these data. The FFIEC also prepared aggregate reports of small business and small farm lending…
SBA: Agency Launches iCAP to Modernize 7(a) Loan Origination, Streamline Workflows, and Accelerate Small Business Lending
Phased Onboarding Will Open for Integrated Origination, Risk Management, and Real-Time Processing for SBA Lenders Today, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced the new Intelligent Capital Access Platform (iCAP), a modern origination, processing, and management platform designed to make SBA lending faster, simpler and more secure. The new platform marks a historic technology overhaul for the…
ABA: Ag Lender Survey Highlights Growing Divergence in Agricultural Financial Conditions
Lenders see growing pressure on borrowers and a more complex year ahead for the farm economy, according to the annual ABA-Farmer Mac Survey Lenders reported continued pressure on farm profitability in 2026, with 75% of respondents saying profitability had tightened in their local agricultural economies, according to the annual survey by the American Bankers Association and Farmer…
SBA: Agency Fuels Main Street Growth with $100 Billion Delivered in FY26
Despite Historic Government Shutdown, Second Year of $100B in Capital Deployed Across Lending, Investment, and Disaster Recovery Today, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced that it closed Fiscal Year (FY) 2026 with $100 billion in capital and related assistance delivered through its flagship programs. Despite a 43-day federal shutdown that halted SBA lending for nearly two months of…
CFPB: Semi-Annual Report to Congress Issued for the January to June 2026 Period
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is pleased to present our Semi-Annual Report to Congress for the period beginning January 1, 2026, and ending June 30, 2026, except where otherwise noted. Message from Acting Director Paoletta This Report covers the remaining six months of the Bureau’s work under the tenure of then-Acting Director R. Vought, who…
SBA: Agency Asks Public to Report Suspected Pandemic-Era Fraud Through DOJ Whistleblower Portal
Whistleblower Program Offers Incentives for Reporting PPP and COVID EIDL Fraud Following President Donald J. Trump’s announcement establishing the Fraud Whistleblower Incentive Program (WHIP), the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) today called on members of the public, federal employees, lenders, and small business owners to report suspected SBA loan and grant fraud through the new centralized federal portal at america.gov/fraud. …
ABA: New Survey Finds U.S. Consumers Are Wary of AI Agents Handling Their Money, Bank Account Information
As a growing number of companies offer artificial intelligence (AI) agents to carry out everyday tasks, a new national survey conducted by Morning Consult on behalf of the American Bankers Association finds that Americans are wary of using them to help manage their personal finances. Key takeaways from the survey, unveiled today at ABA’s 2026 Annual…
SBA: Nearly 700 Noncompliant 8(a) Firms Referred to GSA to Conduct Contract Audits
Firms Face GSA Contract Review After Removal from SBA 8(a) Program Today, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) referred 689 firms that were removed from its 8(a) Business Development Program to the U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) for a comprehensive review of their previous government contract awards. Earlier this year, the firms were removed from…
SBA: Historic Guidance Issued to Recognize America’s Content Creator Economy
Agency clarifies that qualifying content creators are classified under NAICS 5121 for SBA program eligibility Today, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) announced the first federal small-business classification guidance specifically recognizing qualifying content creators within the SBA’s lending and contracting framework. Following SBA’s recent small business size standards proposal, the agency clarified that the nation’s 27 million creator-led businesses are…