A groundbreaking new study reveals a remarkable increase in SBA 7(a) loans, both in count and total value, to Black or African American entrepreneurs from 2017 to 2023. The data underlines significant strides in fostering greater small business lending equity. We predict 7(a) lending to African American firms will reach $1 billion in 2023, up from $599 million in 2017. In 2017, a modest 3.86% of SBA 7(a) loans were disbursed to Black business owners. By 2023, this figure had surged to an encouraging 7.76%. In parallel, the percentage of total loan value received by Black entrepreneurs climbed from 2.36% to 4.41% over the same period. "We are heartened by these findings," says William Michael Cunningham, CEO of Creative Investment Research, "which signal the tangible progress we've been striving for. However, they also underscore the critical work that remains in order to achieve true equity in small business financing." While the study's results clearly ill...
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