Chris Hendrickson, senior vice president of small business strategy at Comerica, and Scott Steinberg, chief product officer and chief operating officer of Enigma, said a multidimensional underwriting process is needed to give a critical lifeline to companies seeking to navigate an uncertain macro environment — and to grow.
The Federal Reserve has hiked interest rates again to a high of 5.25%.
And per other, just-released Fed data, banks are tightening their underwriting standards.
In the midst of it all stand the small- to medium-sized businesses (SMBs) that power the U.S. economy. PYMNTS data estimates that as many as half of these firms may be seeking credit in the months ahead.
From Comercia’s vantage point, said Hendrickson, the tightening underscores the fact that “speed and access to capital will remain very important for small businesses.”