Dramatic FY24 Growth Driven by Small-Dollar 7(a) Loans and Loans to Women, Black, and Latino Entrepreneurs
Today, Vice President Kamala Harris and Administrator Isabel Casillas Guzman, head of the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and the voice for America’s more than 34 million small businesses in President Biden’s Cabinet, announced(Link is external) that the SBA delivered a transformative $56 billion to small businesses and disaster-impacted communities in Fiscal Year 2024 (FY24). The FY24 Capital Impact Report released today shows that the Agency increased its annual capital portfolio – which includes startup, growth, and recovery capital, as well as surety bonds – by 7% over Fiscal Year 2023 (FY23). Moreover, for the first time since 2008, the SBA made more than 100,000 financings to small businesses, representing a 22% increase over FY23 and a 50% increase over 2020.
“Under the Biden-Harris Administration, the SBA has revolutionized its capital access programs, helping finance tens of thousands of small businesses in every corner of this country,” said Administrator Guzman. “As every entrepreneur knows, capital is critical – it’s integral to business owners at all stages of their journey, from startup to growth and resilience. Through loans, investments, and surety bond guarantees, the SBA has helped power the small businesses that have in turn powered America’s unparalleled economic recovery from the COVID-19 crisis. Today, we are proud to share data that reveals how in FY24 the Biden-Harris Administration contributed once again to the historic Small Business Boom which has revitalized Main Streets and innovation hubs across America.”
The SBA’s FY24 Capital Impact Report shows a marked spike in small dollar loans. This notable increase comes on the heels of the agency’s historic program reforms in late FY23 that improved access to affordable small loans. Specifically, these reforms modernized lending criteria for small loans, welcomed new lenders with expertise on underserved borrowers into the 7(a) program, and made it easier for both lenders and business owners to work with the SBA. The FY24 Capital Impact Report reveals that these reforms contributed to a doubling of loans less than $150,000 since FY20, and a 33% increase since FY23.
Since 2020, the most dramatic trend in the SBA’s capital programs has been the outsized growth in loans to Black-, Latino-, and women-owned businesses. In FY 2024, across its signature 7(a) and 504 loan programs, the SBA backed:
- 5,200 loans for $1.5 billion to Black-owned businesses, a tripling of loan count relative to FY20.
- 9,600 loans for $3.3 billion to Latino-owned businesses, reflecting a loan count 2.5 times greater than in FY20.
- 15,500 loans for $5.6 billion to majority women-owned businesses, representing doubling in women-owned business participation relative to FY20.
The FY24 Capital Impact Report also revealed the power of the Biden-Harris Administration’s Investing in America Agenda. In 2023 and 2024, construction became the leading industry in the SBA’s 7(a) program, reflecting in part the once-in-a-generation investment in infrastructure and domestic manufacturing since President Biden took office.
View the complete FY24 Capital Impact report, which includes additional data. For complete data on the SBA’s loan programs visit SBA Office Of Capital Access – Dataset – U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) | Open Data.
Small businesses can visit SBA’s Lender Match page to be matched with participating SBA Lenders that can provide funding with competitive rates and fees.