WASHINGTON — Because of their relatively new entry into Small Business Administration lending, credit unions were not included in the agency's Small Business Economy: A Report to the President for 2007 released yesterday, but the agency said it is working harder to include them in future reports.
The report reviews the economic environment for small businesses in 2006. Among the findings were lenders with more than $10 billion in assets continued to increase their dominance in loans under $100,000 but remained "passive" with loans in the $100,000 to $1 million loan range, which is often seen as a "sweet spot" for many credit unions.
Credit unions are not required to file certain reports and thus, are not included in the data SBA analyzes, said John McDowell, press secretary for SBA's Office of Advocacy. The agency just added thrift data to the annual report, he added. Financial constraints also limit SBA's ability to marry NCUA's data with other data used for the report.
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"It is important that policymakers fully understand how small business is financed and how changes in that market effect our economy," McDowell said. "Credit unions are a growing presence in small business finance and their impact should be considered when policy decisions are being made."
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