Announces historic surge in loan demand, small business growth and confidence
WASHINGTON, April 29, 2025 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) — Today, the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) celebrated the tremendous success of the First 100 Days of the Trump Administration by highlighting the economic wins of President Trump – including an 80% increase in SBA loan approvals which are driving historic rates of growth, hiring, and investment for America’s small businesses. The agency also laid out its top accomplishments under the leadership of Administrator Kelly Loeffler – including major reforms to cut waste, enhance government efficiency, restore fiscal responsibility, and refocus the agency on its core mission of empowering small businesses and growing the economy.
“In just 100 days, President Trump has restored optimism and opportunity for our job creators with a pro-growth economic agenda that has already slashed inflation, driven job creation, and delivered record investment. At the SBA, we’re driving that agenda forward by serving the massive surge in demand for loans – which is a strong indicator that our small businesses finally have the confidence to hire, expand, and invest,” said SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler. “Anchored by our broader efforts to eliminate waste, enhance efficiency, and restore fiscal responsibility, the SBA is now a powerful engine for American workers and job creators – and in just 100 days, the results speak for themselves.”
Compared to Joe Biden’s First 100 Days, demand for new capital has skyrocketed. President Trump’s SBA has delivered an 80% increase in 7(a) and 504 loan approvals with about 26,000 loans approved for $12.6 billion – indicating a strong surge in small business formation and growth. This includes a 95% increase in loans for businesses with five or fewer employees (nearly 15,500 loans), a 56% increase in loans for new startups (over 3,700 loans), and a 74% increase in 7(a) loans for manufacturers (over 1,500 loans).
In total, about 60% of all new SBA loans in the First 100 Days benefitted America’s smallest job creators, with five or fewer employees. Additionally, over the last three months, the percentage of federal contracts awarded to small businesses has increased from 18% to 23%.
In the First 100 Days, the SBA has also enacted the Day One Priorities announced by Administrator Loeffler when she was first sworn-in. Key agency accomplishments include:
Cutting Waste and Enhancing Efficiency
- Reduced total agency spending by about $190 million.
- Terminated or paused over 120 contracts for about $3 billion in future savings.
- Terminated, consolidated, or relocated 47% of SBA leases – including regional offices located in sanctuary cities.
- Announced an agency-wide reorganization that will reduce the SBA workforce by 43%, restoring it to pre-pandemic levels for a cost savings of $435 million annually by 2026.
Advancing President Trump’s Agenda
- Took the lead on the President’s initiative to restore American industrial dominance, jobs, and national security by launching the Made in America Manufacturing Initiative to cut $100 billion in red tape, improve access to capital, and promote workforce development.
- Enacted President Trump’s Executive Orders, including eliminating the Office of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, and Accessibility, updating agency collateral to reflect the existence of only two genders, ending the Green Lender Initiative, and terminating the Biden-era MOU with the Michigan Secretary of State’s office.
Restoring Fiscal Responsibility
- Took immediate action to enhance fraud protections within SBA loan programs by mandating that all loan applications include a citizenship and birth date verification.
- Restored underwriting standards and lender fees to the 7(a) loan program in the effort to preserve the zero-subsidy status of the program, protect taxpayers from fiscal liability, and reverse the Biden-era mismanagement that led to historic defaults.
Delivering Disaster Relief
- Approved over 17,000 disaster loans totaling $3.4 billion, far exceeding the total volume of disaster loans approved in all of FY 24 under Biden – including $1.4 billion in Florida, $350 million in North Carolina, and $173 million in Georgia.
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About the U.S. Small Business Administration
The U.S. Small Business Administration helps power the American dream of entrepreneurship. As the leading voice for small businesses within the federal government, the SBA empowers job creators with the resources and support they need to start, grow, and expand their businesses or recover from a declared disaster. It delivers services through an extensive network of SBA field offices and partnerships with public and private organizations. To learn more, visit www.sba.gov.
CONTACT: SBA HQ Press Team U.S. Small Business Administration press_office@sba.gov
