Editorials

One editorial a week, reading the SBA loan record for what it actually says — about lenders, franchises, and the advice borrowers are usually given. Opinionated, sourced entirely from public federal data, and beholden to no lender. By Gene Deghtyar.

No. 1 · 2026-08-03

SBA Lender Rankings Are More Misleading Than Borrowers Realize

The “best SBA lender” lists rank banks by volume and get paid to do it. Neither has anything to do with whether a lender’s loans suc…

In the queue

upcoming

· Why Some Banks Quietly Avoid Smaller SBA Loans

· A High SBA Approval Volume Does Not Make a Bank Borrower-Friendly

· The Franchise Brands I’d Investigate Before Signing Anything

· Why SBA Borrowers Focus Too Much on Interest Rates

· The SBA Loan Industry Has a Transparency Problem

· What Lender Referral Websites Aren’t Telling Borrowers

· Why a “Preferred SBA Lender” May Still Be Wrong for You

· The Real Risk of Buying a Business With Almost No Working Capital

· SBA Default Data Belongs in Every Franchise Disclosure Conversation

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The data behind the column

Lender charge-off rates → Franchise default rates → Lender matcher → All research →