Capital Intelligence · Analysis dated July 2026
Size Is Not Safety: What 1.48 Million Resolved SBA Loans Reveal About Your Lender
Across 1.48 million resolved SBA loans, the 25 highest volume lenders charged off roughly 18.5 percent of their loans while small and specialty lenders charged off 11.6 percent. The biggest name on the marquee is often the one most likely to walk away from your deal.
The pattern that runs through the whole dataset
The largest SBA lenders write more than half of all loan volume in the public record. They also carry the highest loss rates in it. In the resolved loan population we studied, higher volume tracked with higher charge off rates at every tier we tested. The most recognized lender is frequently the least disciplined one.
Figures reflect 1,481,452 resolved SBA 7(a) and 504 loans (approvals 1991 through 2019, 1,253,780 paid in full and 227,672 charged off). Analysis dated July 2026. Method below.
The data, tested four ways
One headline number can mislead. So we tested the pattern four separate ways, and it held every time. Each figure is dated and reproducible from the public SBA dataset using the queries shown in the method section.
Exhibit A
Charge off rate by lender size tier
All resolved loans, approvals 1991 to 2019
| 25 highest volume lenders139,199 of 752,316 resolved | 18.5% |
| Mid size lendersranks 26 to 250 by volume | 12.5% |
| Small and specialty lenders5,225 lenders, ranks 251 and beyond | 11.6% |
Monotonic. The rate falls at every step down in lender size. Gap between largest and smallest: 1.6 times.
Exhibit B
It holds in every approval era
25 highest volume lenders versus everyone else
| Approval era | Top 25 | Everyone else |
|---|---|---|
| 1991 to 2003 | 13.0% | 12.0% |
| 2004 to 2008 (stress) | 32.0% | 22.7% |
| 2009 to 2013 | 9.5% | 7.2% |
| 2014 to 2019 | 9.5% | 6.6% |
Never reverses. The 2014 to 2019 cohort is younger and less matured, so those levels understate final losses, but the ranking is what matters and it is consistent.
Exhibit C
The gap widens under stress
Approvals 2004 to 2008, the most stressed cohort
When conditions turned, the biggest lenders lost far more. Throughput is the first thing to seize when a portfolio comes under pressure.
Exhibit D
Same direction by the dollar
Loss per dollar of resolved principal, all years
Measured by dollars rather than by loan count, the largest still lose more. The result is not an artifact of bigger loans.
And the spread between individual lenders is enormous. Among the 308 lenders with at least 500 resolved loans, charge off rates run from 0.5 percent at the most disciplined to 48.1 percent at the loosest. The most disciplined tenth sit below 5.9 percent, the loosest tenth above 17.5 percent. Which lender you sit with matters more than almost any other variable in your deal.
Four lenses, one result. Size correlates with loss, in calm years and stressed years, by loan count and by dollar.
Method, so you can reproduce it
- Source is the public SBA 7(a) and 504 loan level disclosure (FOIA release), approvals fiscal years 1991 through 2019. Analysis dated July 2026.
- We keep only resolved loans, meaning paid in full or charged off. That is 1,481,452 loans. Loans still open, cancelled, exempt, or not funded are excluded because their outcome is not yet known.
- Charge off rate is charged off loans divided by resolved loans within each group. Nothing weighted, nothing modeled.
- Lenders are ranked by total loan volume, then grouped into the 25 highest volume, mid size (ranks 26 to 250), and small and specialty (ranks 251 and beyond).
- We separate approval eras so no single downturn can drive the result.
- We also measure loss per dollar of resolved principal, not just per loan.
The core query
WITH bank_stats AS (
SELECT bank_name,
count(*) total_loans,
count(*) FILTER (
WHERE loan_status IN ('PIF','CHGOFF')) resolved,
count(*) FILTER (
WHERE loan_status = 'CHGOFF') chgoff
FROM sba_loans
WHERE bank_name IS NOT NULL
GROUP BY bank_name
),
ranked AS (
SELECT *, row_number() OVER (
ORDER BY total_loans DESC) rk
FROM bank_stats
)
SELECT
CASE WHEN rk <= 25 THEN 'top25'
WHEN rk <= 250 THEN 'mid'
ELSE 'small_specialty' END tier,
round(100.0 * sum(chgoff)
/ sum(resolved), 2) charge_off_rate
FROM ranked GROUP BY 1;What we are careful not to claim
- We do not report loans approved in 2020 through 2022 as if defaults had already happened. Those loans are too young and not fully matured, so their final loss rates are unknown. We exclude them rather than guess.
- This is cohort behavior across groups of lenders, not a verdict on any single institution. We name no individual lender.
- Correlation is a decision input for a borrower, not a prediction about your specific deal. A disciplined match still matters more than any average.
- Timeframes are stated by approval era, by year, and never by political administration. The pattern is economic, not partisan.
The biggest brand can be the one that drops you mid deal
Name recognition is a poor proxy for reliability, and reliability is what you are actually buying. A high velocity originator is optimized for throughput, and throughput is the first thing to seize when a portfolio comes under pressure or a credit box quietly shifts.
The moment that hurts most is mid deal, after you have committed capital and started to build. The right match beats the biggest brand. A capital source whose appetite genuinely fits your deal, asset, and timing funds through to completion far more reliably than a household name that took your file as one of thousands. Before you sign with anyone, it is worth one conversation.
A call first is cheaper than a rescue
A franchise sponsor was building out a new coffee location. He chose a large, high volume SBA lender and began construction. He was roughly $250,000 into the build out, contractors on site and a lease clock running, when the lender pulled its funding mid construction.
He came to us mid crisis. Through our network we made one introduction to a capital source whose appetite actually fit an in progress franchise build, and that lender funded the project through to completion. The store opened.
The rescue worked, but the emergency was avoidable. Had he called before committing, we would have matched him to a fitting lender from the start. A call first is cheaper than a rescue.
Anonymized composite for illustration. Identifying details, including the lender, borrower, location, and figures, have been altered or generalized. Individual outcomes vary and are not guaranteed. PeerSense is not a lender. We are a capital advisory firm.
Financing a build or acquisition? Get matched to a lender that funds to completion.
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Frequently asked questions
Does the biggest SBA lender really have a higher charge off rate?
Yes. Across 1.48 million resolved SBA 7(a) and 504 loans (approvals 1991 through 2019), the 25 highest volume lenders charged off 18.5 percent of their loans, versus 12.5 percent for mid size lenders and 11.6 percent for small and specialty lenders. That is about 1.6 times the small and specialty rate. Analysis dated July 2026.
Is that just because the largest lenders write bigger or riskier loans?
No. Measured by dollar of resolved principal rather than by loan count, the 25 highest volume lenders still lost more: 8.17 cents per dollar versus 6.60 cents for everyone else. The direction is unchanged when you control for loan size.
Is the pattern just an artifact of one recession?
No. The 25 highest volume lenders charged off more than everyone else in every approval era we tested: 13.0 versus 12.0 percent for 1991 to 2003, 32.0 versus 22.7 percent for the stressed 2004 to 2008 cohort, 9.5 versus 7.2 percent for 2009 to 2013, and 9.5 versus 6.6 percent for 2014 to 2019. The gap widens under stress but never reverses.
What about loans approved in 2020 to 2022?
We deliberately exclude them. Those loans are still young and not fully matured, so their final loss rates are unknown. We draw no conclusions from that era.
What should a borrower do with this?
Do not treat brand size as a proxy for reliability. Match the lender to the specific deal, asset, and timing before committing. Have the deal reviewed by an advisor who can place it with a capital source whose appetite genuinely fits. PeerSense matches borrowers to the right source from a curated network.
Match beats brand. Let us find your fit.
You do not have to guess which lender will actually fund your deal to completion. Tell us about your project and we will match you with the right capital source from our curated network, chosen for fit rather than fame.
Source and method. Source: SBA 7(a) and 504 loan level FOIA disclosure. Approvals fiscal years 1991 through 2019. Resolved (paid in full or charged off) loans only. Analysis dated July 2026. Charge off rate is charged off loans divided by resolved loans (paid in full or charged off) within each group. Loss per dollar is charged off principal divided by resolved principal. Lender size tiers are defined by total loan volume: the 25 highest volume lenders, mid size (ranks 26 to 250), and small and specialty (ranks 251 and beyond).
No individual lender is named anywhere on this page. Timeframes are stated by approval era and year, never by political administration. Loans approved in 2020 and later are excluded as not yet fully matured.
The case study is an anonymized composite for illustration. Identifying details have been altered or generalized. Individual outcomes vary and are not guaranteed. PeerSense is a capital advisory firm and is not a lender.
Related reading: State of SBA Lending 2026 · Default Rates by Industry · Industry Data Library