In fiscal year 2025, lenders approved 1,020 SBA 7(a) loans worth $546.9 million to businesses in Tennessee. Here is where that money went, which institutions approved it, and how big a loan a business like yours actually gets — straight from the SBA's own published records.
The median approval was $206,000, $39,150 above the national median of $166,850. That number matters more than the headline total: it is the size of deal lenders in this state are comfortable writing, and asking for something far outside it is the quiet reason many files stall.
| Loan size | 7(a) loans | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Under $50K | 117 | 11.5% |
| $50K-$150K | 231 | 22.6% |
| $150K-$350K | 294 | 28.8% |
| $350K-$1M | 231 | 22.6% |
| $1M+ | 147 | 14.4% |
35.7% of Tennessee approvals went to new businesses (startups or under two years old), against 29.8% nationally.
Ranked by number of FY2025 approvals to Tennessee businesses. The single most active 7(a) lender in the state was Northeast Bank with 124 approvals at a median of $125,000 — which tells you exactly the size of deal it wants.
| Lender | Loans in Tennessee | Median size | Total approved |
|---|---|---|---|
| Northeast Bank | 124 | $125,000 | $17.8 million |
| The Huntington National Bank | 107 | $300,000 | $61.1 million |
| Newtek Bank, National Association | 105 | $170,000 | $33.7 million |
| U.S. Bank, National Association | 95 | $41,000 | $20.8 million |
| Readycap Lending, LLC | 53 | $50,000 | $10.6 million |
| Live Oak Banking Company | 40 | $523,000 | $43.7 million |
| BayFirst National Bank | 40 | $150,000 | $9.2 million |
| Pinnacle Bank | 36 | $905,550 | $45.3 million |
| United Midwest Savings Bank National Association | 33 | $150,000 | $15.1 million |
| Regions Bank | 28 | $372,150 | $22.5 million |
| Celtic Bank Corporation | 21 | $150,000 | $5.7 million |
| Lendistry SBLC, LLC | 20 | $150,000 | $3.6 million |
Lenders are listed because the SBA publishes them. Inclusion is not a recommendation, an endorsement, or a statement that any of them will approve your file — and Goldspur Capital is not affiliated with any lender named.
The median initial rate recorded at approval was 10.25%, with most loans between 8.5% and 12.5%, and 87.4% written on a variable rate. Historic rates at approval across the year — not a quote, and not what you would be offered today.
| Industry | Loans | Median loan |
|---|---|---|
| Snack and Nonalcoholic Beverage Bars | 39 | $425,300 |
| Limited-Service Restaurants | 35 | $355,100 |
| Full-Service Restaurants | 34 | $295,000 |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers | 30 | $365,000 |
| Janitorial Services | 25 | $150,000 |
| Residential Remodelers | 23 | $60,000 |
| Other Personal Care Services | 23 | $392,000 |
| Landscaping Services | 21 | $99,300 |
| General Automotive Repair | 20 | $187,500 |
| Clothing and Clothing Accessories Retailers | 19 | $150,000 |
| County | Loans | Median loan |
|---|---|---|
| Davidson | 199 | $200,000 |
| Shelby | 109 | $250,000 |
| Knox | 108 | $150,000 |
| Williamson | 75 | $150,000 |
| Hamilton | 59 | $260,000 |
| Rutherford | 54 | $207,050 |
| Sumner | 44 | $233,850 |
| Montgomery | 40 | $197,500 |
504 money buys property and heavy equipment, at a long fixed rate, through a Certified Development Company partnered with a bank. Tennessee saw 26 504 approvals worth $46.6 million in FY2025, median $1,461,000. The most active CDCs:
| CDC | 504 loans | Median size | Total approved |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brightbridge, Inc. | 19 | $1,499,000 | $35.6 million |
| South Central Tennessee Business Development Corporation | 5 | $865,000 | $5.9 million |
| Fiscal year | 7(a) loans approved | Total approved | Median |
|---|---|---|---|
| FY2023 | 659 | $372.4 million | $240,000 |
| FY2024 | 820 | $420.9 million | $157,000 |
| FY2025 | 1,020 | $546.9 million | $206,000 |
| FY2026 (partial) | 596 | $352.3 million | $250,000 |
Three practical readings. First, size your ask to the state's median band — a request that sits where lenders are already active is a materially easier file than one that does not. Second, a decline is a matching problem far more often than a credit problem: the tables above show institutions with completely different appetites operating in the same state in the same year. Third, if your industry is not in the list above, it does not mean no, it means fewer lenders — and that is exactly the situation where going through a partner who knows which desk to call is worth more than another application.
Source: U.S. Small Business Administration, 7(a) and 504 FOIA loan data (data.sba.gov), files as of 30 June 2026, read on 1 September 2026. Figures cover loan APPROVALS, not disbursements, and the files contain no declined applications — so no approval rate can be calculated from them. Fiscal year 2026 is partial (1 October 2025 to 30 June 2026). Aggregated by Goldspur Capital; borrower-level records are not published. State figures are aggregated on the project state of each loan. Program guidelines shown are our lending partners' published minimums as of September 2026 and can change. They are qualification floors, not an offer.
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