Top SBA 7(a) Lenders in the U.S., FY2026 YTD
Top SBA 7(a) Lenders in the U.S., FY2026 YTD
Live Oak Banking Company leads U.S. SBA 7(a) lenders by FY2026 year-to-date approved dollar volume, followed by Newtek Bank and The Huntington National Bank. The standings used here were retrieved August 7, 2026 from CircumFi’s extraction of official SBA Lender Detail reports.
This ranking orders lenders by approved 7(a) dollars, not loan count, approval rate or disbursements. The table is a compiled research dataset based on 2 sources, with row-level source and method notes shown in the ranking table.
Coverage: 10 confirmed lenders. Unit: U.S. dollar millions at published precision. Direction: higher approval volume ranks higher. Target period: partial FY2026 year-to-date. Status counts: 0 official_value, 10 calculated_value, 0 official_forecast, 0 modeled_projection. Calculated values normalize published FY2026 lender-volume observations to a common US$ million unit and are not forecasts or projections.
Live Oak Banking Company ranks first by approved SBA 7(a) dollar volume.
Newtek Bank ranks second and Huntington ranks third.
All entries use the same FY2026 YTD lender-volume metric and retrieval date.
Partial-year standings; no FY2026 year-end forecast is included.
What this SBA 7(a) lender ranking measures
The metric is current-fiscal-year SBA 7(a) approved dollar volume attributed to each lender. A larger approval total receives a higher rank.
Approval volume measures lending activity, not lender quality. It does not show how many applications a lender rejected, whether a particular borrower is likely to qualify, or how much approved financing has already been disbursed.
How to read the values
Raw ranking values are stored in U.S. dollar millions at the precision available in the confirmed August 7 extraction. For example, a published value of $1.88 billion is normalized to 1,880 US$ million for ranking and chart calculations. No additional decimal precision is inferred.
Top 10 SBA 7(a) lenders by approved dollar volume
FY2026 year-to-date standings retrieved August 7, 2026
| Rank | Entity | Value | Source / Method Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Live Oak Banking Company | $1.88B | NC; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 1,822 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; $1.88B × 1,000 = 1,880 US$M. |
| 2 | Newtek Bank, National Association | $1.20B | FL; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 4,406 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; $1.20B × 1,000 = 1,200 US$M. |
| 3 | The Huntington National Bank | $1.12B | OH; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 2,921 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; $1.12B × 1,000 = 1,120 US$M. |
| 4 | U.S. Bank National Association | $706.9M | OH; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 2,495 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
| 5 | Northeast Bank | $570.4M | ME; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 3,064 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
| 6 | Celtic Bank Corporation | $457.5M | UT; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 1,011 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
| 7 | Bank of Hope | $438.4M | CA; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 354 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
| 8 | Harvest Small Business Finance, LLC | $410.3M | CA; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 376 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
| 9 | GBank | $403.4M | NV; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 125 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
| 10 | US Metro Bank | $388.6M | CA; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 206 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
Rank is based on the same August 7 FY2026 YTD standings for every lender. Values are normalized only to a common US$ million unit; no unpublished exact-to-the-dollar amounts are inferred.
Chart: Top 10 SBA 7(a) lenders by FY2026 YTD volume
Live Oak is clearly separated from the rest of the Top 10. Newtek and Huntington form the next tier, followed by a substantial drop to U.S. Bank.
Methodology
Metric and direction
FY2026 year-to-date SBA 7(a) approved dollar volume by lender. Higher volume ranks higher.
Source inputs
CircumFi reports that its FY2026 standings are computed directly from official SBA Lender Detail reports retrieved August 7, 2026.
Calculation formula
Published value in billions × 1,000 = US$ millions. Published values already expressed in millions are retained unchanged. Rank is descending by the normalized value.
Assumptions
Published source precision is preserved. No additional decimal places, missing dollars, future approvals or fiscal-year-end values are estimated.
Method note: CircumFi reports that its FY2026 standings are computed directly from official SBA Lender Detail reports retrieved August 7, 2026. StatRanker normalizes the published dollar units to US$ millions for ranking and chart calculations. The result is classified as calculated_value because the common-unit value is derived from the published lender-volume observation rather than copied verbatim in every case.
Coverage: the ten lenders identified as FY2026 YTD dollar-volume leaders in the consistent August 7 extraction. SBA 504 activity, microloans and rankings based on loan count are excluded.
Missing values: none within the confirmed Top 10 used here. No lender amount is imputed.
Conflict handling: values from different retrieval dates are not averaged or mixed. Every ranking row uses the same August 7, 2026 extraction.
Rounding: displayed amounts preserve the available source precision. A displayed $1.88B value is normalized to 1,880 US$ million without implying additional exact-to-the-dollar precision.
Limits: approval volume does not measure approval rate, applications received, borrower eligibility, interest rates, closing speed, default risk, customer service, disbursements or outstanding principal.
Main ranking: SBA 7(a) lenders by FY2026 YTD approval volume
Top 10 confirmed lenders · U.S. dollar millions
| Rank | Entity | Value | Source / Method Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Live Oak Banking Company | $1.88B | NC; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 1,822 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; $1.88B × 1,000 = 1,880 US$M. |
| 2 | Newtek Bank, National Association | $1.20B | FL; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 4,406 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; $1.20B × 1,000 = 1,200 US$M. |
| 3 | The Huntington National Bank | $1.12B | OH; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 2,921 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; $1.12B × 1,000 = 1,120 US$M. |
| 4 | U.S. Bank National Association | $706.9M | OH; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 2,495 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
| 5 | Northeast Bank | $570.4M | ME; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 3,064 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
| 6 | Celtic Bank Corporation | $457.5M | UT; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 1,011 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
| 7 | Bank of Hope | $438.4M | CA; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 354 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
| 8 | Harvest Small Business Finance, LLC | $410.3M | CA; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 376 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
| 9 | GBank | $403.4M | NV; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 125 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
| 10 | US Metro Bank | $388.6M | CA; calculated_value; FY2026 SBA Lender Detail data extracted by CircumFi from official SBA reports; 206 loans; retrieved Aug. 7, 2026; source-reported millions retained unchanged. |
All values use one retrieval date and one normalization method. Earlier July 31 figures are not mixed into this ranking.
Insights from the FY2026 YTD ranking
Key Insight
Live Oak leads at $1.88 billion, about $680 million above second-ranked Newtek at the published precision.
Notable Pattern
Newtek has the highest loan count in the Top 10 at 4,406, yet ranks second by dollars. Loan count and approval volume produce different lender comparisons.
Regional/Source Concentration
Three of the Top 10 lender records are associated with California: Bank of Hope, Harvest Small Business Finance and US Metro Bank. Every ranking row uses the same FY2026 YTD SBA lender-report framework and August 7 extraction.
Outlier
GBank ranks ninth with only 125 loans but $403.4 million of approvals, the smallest loan count in this Top 10 despite a top-ten dollar total.
What this ranking means for borrowers
A high rank shows substantial SBA 7(a) approval activity during FY2026. It does not mean the lender is automatically the best option for a particular business.
Borrowers still need to compare loan purpose, loan size, industry fit, underwriting requirements, collateral, geographic availability and lender-specific credit policies. The ranking cannot be used as an approval-rate table because it does not contain a comparable count of all applications received and declined.
Approved dollars are different from disbursed dollars and outstanding balances. This table measures approved lending activity for the reported fiscal-year period.
FAQ
Who is the top SBA 7(a) lender in FY2026 YTD?
Live Oak Banking Company ranks first by approved dollar volume in the August 7, 2026 extraction, at $1.88 billion at the published precision.
Are these final FY2026 rankings?
No. These are partial FY2026 year-to-date standings. The federal fiscal year ends September 30, 2026, so later approvals can change the final order.
What determines the ranking?
Lenders are ordered from highest to lowest by FY2026 year-to-date SBA 7(a) approved dollar volume.
Are these official published values?
CircumFi reports that the underlying FY2026 observations are computed directly from official SBA Lender Detail reports. StatRanker classifies the table values as calculated_value because published dollar units are normalized to a common US$ million unit for comparison.
Why does Newtek have more loans but rank below Live Oak?
The ranking is based on dollars, not loan count. Newtek has 4,406 loans in the August 7 extraction versus 1,822 for Live Oak, but Live Oak has the larger approved dollar volume.
Does a high rank mean a lender has a higher approval rate?
No. Approval rate requires both approvals and total applications. This dataset measures approved activity and does not provide a comparable application denominator for each lender.
Does this ranking include SBA 504 lending?
No. The ranking is limited to SBA 7(a) lender activity.
Sources
U.S. Small Business Administration — Current-Month 7(a) & 504 Activity Reports
Primary official source framework. SBA states that the 7(a) Lender Activity Report summarizes current fiscal-year approvals by 7(a) lenders and is updated monthly.
https://data.sba.gov/dataset/7a-504-activity-reports-current-month
CircumFi — SBA Lender Growth and FY2026 YTD Leaders
Extraction and verification source for the consistent August 7, 2026 Top 10 standings. CircumFi states that its rankings are computed directly from official SBA 7(a) and 504 Lender Detail reports.
U.S. Small Business Administration — 7(a) & 504 FOIA
Official loan-level reference source. SBA provides downloadable 7(a) loan-level files and updates the FOIA dataset quarterly.
U.S. Small Business Administration — 7(a) Loan Program
Official program context for SBA 7(a) financing and participating lenders.
