{ "@context": "https://schema.org", "@type": "Dataset", "name": "ClearValue Capital Index", "alternateName": "State of SMB Capital", "description": "Weekly observation of US small business capital market metrics. Federal benchmarks (Prime Rate, SBA caps), network-observed routing prices across ClearValue Lending's lender partner network (MCA factor rates, term loan APR ranges), and operational data from the ClearValue funnel (most-routed product types).", "license": "https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/", "isAccessibleForFree": true, "url": "https://clearvaluelending.com/index/smb-capital", "publisher": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "ClearValue Lending", "url": "https://clearvaluelending.com" }, "creator": { "@type": "Organization", "name": "ClearValue Lending", "url": "https://clearvaluelending.com" }, "spatialCoverage": { "@type": "Country", "name": "United States" }, "inLanguage": "en-US", "keywords": [ "small business lending", "MCA factor rate", "term loan APR", "SBA 7(a) cap", "prime rate", "business line of credit", "capital markets", "small business credit" ], "citation": "ClearValue Capital Index, Week of . ClearValue Lending. https://clearvaluelending.com/index/smb-capital", "dateModified": "2026-05-20", "temporalCoverage": "2026-05-19/..", "releases": [ { "releaseId": "2026-W21", "releasedOn": "2026-05-20", "weekOf": "2026-05-19", "headline": "Prime steady, SBA cap doubles, MCA factor rates compress at the lower band", "summary": "Week of May 19, 2026: Federal Prime Rate held at 7.50% for the seventh consecutive week. SBA's cumulative 7(a) + 504 loan limit officially expanded to $10M per borrower effective July 4. Across our routing network, observed median MCA factor rates compressed at the lower band (1.18-1.32, narrowing from 1.16-1.38 in early Q2).", "editorialNote": "We publish this index because journalists, fintech researchers, and small business owners deserve a transparent observation of where capital is actually pricing — not just lender marketing pages or stale survey data. Our routing observations are not closed-deal data, but they are real-time, anonymized, and methodologically consistent week to week. Cite as: \"ClearValue Capital Index, Week of (clearvaluelending.com/index/smb-capital).\"", "metrics": [ { "slug": "prime-rate", "name": "Federal Prime Rate", "value": "6.75%", "interpretation": "Anchor rate for variable-rate bank lines of credit and many term loans. Held flat for 7 consecutive weeks; markets currently price 0 Fed cuts before Q3 2026.", "methodology": "Direct Federal Reserve H.15 release (DPRIME series), pulled via FRED API on the Monday of each weekly release window.", "source": { "type": "federal-benchmark", "label": "Federal Reserve H.15 (DPRIME)", "url": "https://www.federalreserve.gov/releases/h15/" }, "weekOf": "2026-05-19", "lastVerified": "2026-06-16", "weekOverWeek": "flat" }, { "slug": "sba-7a-cumulative-cap", "name": "SBA 7(a) + 504 Cumulative Cap (per borrower)", "value": "$10,000,000", "interpretation": "Doubled from $5M effective July 4, 2026. Programs decoupled — borrowers can access $5M in each program independently. The largest expansion of SBA borrower capacity in agency history.", "methodology": "Direct from SBA program rules (announcement May 18, 2026). New cap effective July 4, 2026. Pre-July 4 applications are sized under the prior $5M cumulative cap.", "source": { "type": "federal-benchmark", "label": "SBA announcement, May 18, 2026", "url": "https://www.sba.gov/article/2026/05/18/sba-doubles-cumulative-7a-504-loan-limit-10-million" }, "weekOf": "2026-05-19", "lastVerified": "2026-05-20", "weekOverWeek": "up" }, { "slug": "median-term-loan-apr-range", "name": "ClearValue Network: Term Loan APR Range (median)", "value": "9.0% – 28.5%", "interpretation": "Observed APR range across qualifying SMB term loan applications routed through ClearValue's lender partner network during the week. Wide range reflects the credit-quality spread: stronger files (650+ FICO, 24+ months in business, $25K+/mo deposits) cluster at the lower band; thinner files price to the upper band.", "methodology": "ClearValue Lending observes term-loan APRs at the lender-matching stage across our partner network. This is NOT closed-deal data (we are not the originator); it reflects the APR each partner indicates at the time of match. Reported as the central 80% range (P10–P90) for matched-and-quoted applications in the observation week. No applicant identifying data is used.", "source": { "type": "network-observation", "label": "ClearValue Lending routing observations" }, "weekOf": "2026-05-19", "lastVerified": "2026-05-20", "weekOverWeek": "flat" }, { "slug": "median-mca-factor-rate", "name": "ClearValue Network: MCA Factor Rate (median range)", "value": "1.18 – 1.32", "interpretation": "Observed factor rate range across qualifying MCA applications routed through ClearValue's funder partner network during the week. Lower-band factor rates correlate with stronger deposit history and longer time-in-business. Compressed slightly from 1.16–1.38 observed in early Q2 2026 — fewer extreme high-factor offers in the network.", "methodology": "ClearValue Lending observes MCA factor rates at the funder-matching stage. Same caveat as the term loan metric: routing observations, not closed deals. P10–P90 of matched-and-quoted applications in the observation week.", "source": { "type": "network-observation", "label": "ClearValue Lending routing observations" }, "weekOf": "2026-05-19", "lastVerified": "2026-05-20", "weekOverWeek": "flat" }, { "slug": "most-routed-product", "name": "Most-Routed SMB Product (week)", "value": "Business Line of Credit", "interpretation": "Business LOC was the #1 most-routed product type this week across our SMB funnel — consistent with the spring working-capital cycle as restaurants, contractors, and services businesses position for Q3 cash needs. Equipment financing #2; MCAs #3; SBA 7(a) #4.", "methodology": "Tallied from anonymized outbound_clicks + apply_handoff events during the observation week. No applicant identifying data used. Ranking reflects intent (clicks + handoffs), not approval rate.", "source": { "type": "operational-data", "label": "ClearValue Lending funnel telemetry" }, "weekOf": "2026-05-19", "lastVerified": "2026-05-20", "weekOverWeek": "flat" }, { "slug": "h8-ci-loans", "name": "H.8: Commercial & Industrial Loans, All Commercial Banks", "value": "$2,897.1B", "interpretation": "Total C&I loan stock at all US commercial banks. Tracks aggregate business-credit supply across the banking system. Used by economists as a real-time read on whether banks are extending or pulling back from SMB credit.", "methodology": "Federal Reserve H.8 release (BUSLOANS series), pulled via FRED API. Weekly observation, seasonally adjusted, in billions of dollars.", "source": { "type": "federal-benchmark", "label": "Federal Reserve H.8 (BUSLOANS)", "url": "https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/BUSLOANS" }, "weekOf": "2026-05-19", "lastVerified": "2026-05-01", "weekOverWeek": "up" }, { "slug": "delinquency-rate-ci", "name": "Delinquency Rate on Business Loans, All Commercial Banks", "value": "1.34%", "interpretation": "Share of C&I loan balances 30+ days past due across all US commercial banks. Lagging indicator of borrower stress and a leading indicator of bank-tightening cycles. Quarterly cadence.", "methodology": "Federal Reserve Board release (DRBLACBS series), pulled via FRED API. Quarterly observation, seasonally adjusted, percent of loan balances.", "source": { "type": "federal-benchmark", "label": "Federal Reserve DRBLACBS", "url": "https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/DRBLACBS" }, "weekOf": "2026-05-19", "lastVerified": "2026-01-01", "weekOverWeek": "up" }, { "slug": "chargeoff-rate-ci", "name": "Charge-Off Rate on Business Loans, All Commercial Banks", "value": "0.59%", "interpretation": "Share of C&I loan balances banks have written off as uncollectible during the quarter, annualized. Direct loss observation; lags delinquency by 1-2 quarters. Rising charge-offs typically precede tighter underwriting standards.", "methodology": "Federal Reserve Board release (CORBLACBS series), pulled via FRED API. Quarterly observation, seasonally adjusted, annualized percent.", "source": { "type": "federal-benchmark", "label": "Federal Reserve CORBLACBS", "url": "https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/CORBLACBS" }, "weekOf": "2026-05-19", "lastVerified": "2026-01-01", "weekOverWeek": "up" }, { "slug": "treasury-10y", "name": "10-Year Treasury Constant Maturity", "value": "4.49%", "interpretation": "Benchmark long-rate. Anchors fixed-rate term loans and SBA 504 debenture pricing. Watched by lenders deciding whether to extend long-dated SMB term debt.", "methodology": "Federal Reserve H.15 release (DGS10 series), pulled via FRED API. Daily observation.", "source": { "type": "federal-benchmark", "label": "Federal Reserve H.15 (DGS10)", "url": "https://fred.stlouisfed.org/series/DGS10" }, "weekOf": "2026-05-19", "lastVerified": "2026-06-17", "weekOverWeek": "down" } ] } ] }