SBA 7(a) Interest Rates for Business Acquisitions - Q2 2026 Update

What Are SBA Acquisition Loan Rates Right Now?#

In Q2 2026, the median SBA 7(a) business acquisition loan carried a rate of 8.75% - that's Prime + 2.00% with the WSJ Prime Rate holding at 6.75%. Based on 826 acquisition loans disbursed during the quarter.

What Changed From Last Quarter#

Acquisition loan volume jumped 17% from Q1 (704 loans) to Q2 (826 loans). Some context: Q1 was depressed by the tail end of the 43-day government shutdown (Oct 1 - Nov 12, 2025), which halted all SBA loan processing and created a backlog that stretched into early 2026. A brief 4-day partial shutdown in late January added another interruption. Q2 represents a return to fully normalized SBA operations. The volume increase is partly recovery, partly genuine demand.

Here's what else moved:

• Variable-rate share grew from 86.6% to 89.5%. The market is shifting further away from fixed-rate deals.
• Variable spreads held steady at a median of Prime + 2.00%, but the top quartile tightened from +2.75% to +2.50%. Lenders are competing harder at the upper end.
• Fixed rates dropped from 7.99% to 7.75% (-24 basis points). The few lenders still offering fixed rates are pricing more aggressively.

The takeaway: rates haven't changed, but lender behavior has. The spread compression at Q3 and the fixed-rate drop suggest competitive pressure is building - lenders are chasing a growing pool of deal flow.

Variable-Rate Loans#

89.5% of SBA 7(a) acquisition loans in Q2 2026 were variable-rate - 739 out of 826 total.

The vast majority of SBA variable-rate loans are pegged to the WSJ Prime Rate plus a spread. The SBA caps that spread at Prime + 3.0% for acquisition-sized loans.

Here's what borrowers actually paid:

Most borrowers paid between 8.25% and 9.25%. If your quote falls in that range, you're in the mainstream. Below 8.25% is competitive; above 9.25% warrants shopping around.

Compared to Q1, the 75th percentile tightened from 9.50% to 9.25% - fewer borrowers are paying top-of-range spreads.

Fixed-Rate Loans#

Only 10.5% of SBA acquisition loans in Q2 2026 were fixed-rate - 87 loans, down from 94 in Q1.

Fixed-rate SBA loans are uncommon because most lenders sell the guaranteed portion on the secondary market, and variable-rate loans sell at a premium. Lenders that offer fixed rates are typically portfolio lenders who keep loans on their balance sheet.

The median fixed rate dropped from 7.99% in Q1 to 7.75% in Q2 - a meaningful 24-basis-point decline. Borrowers with strong profiles are locking in fixed rates below the variable median.

For more on which lenders offer fixed rates and why, see our ranking of fixed-rate SBA lenders.

Rates by Loan Size#

SBA spread caps vary by loan size, and so do actual rates. Smaller loans tend to carry higher spreads (lenders charge more for the additional servicing cost relative to loan size), while larger loans cluster closer to the cap floor.

The pattern continues to hold: larger loans get better variable-rate pricing. The $4M-$5M bucket shows a median spread of just Prime + 1.00%, compared to +2.50% for sub-$500K loans.

Lenders Offering the Best Variable Rates#

These lenders had the lowest median variable-rate spreads in Q2 2026, with a minimum of 5 acquisition loans in the quarter:

Fifth Third Bank takes the #1 spot at Prime + 0.00% - effectively lending at the Prime Rate itself. Four of their seven Q2 loans were priced at exactly 6.75%, all on deals above $1.2M. Fifth Third has historically offered aggressive pricing on larger acquisition deals, with 227 total acquisition loans averaging $1.67M. Their Prime-flat pricing appears reserved for strong borrowers on larger transactions - not a blanket rate.

Live Oak Bank remains the volume leader, doing 79 acquisition loans across 31 states at a competitive +1.50% spread.

Loan count matters - a low rate on 5 loans could mean the lender is selective, while a low rate on 50+ loans suggests broadly competitive pricing.

Best Fixed-Rate Lenders#

These lenders offered the lowest fixed rates in Q2 2026, with at least 3 fixed-rate acquisition loans:

Bank of America stands out at 5.85% - nearly a full percentage point below Prime. How? BofA is a portfolio lender keeping SBA loans on their balance sheet rather than selling them on the secondary market. Their cost of funds is far lower than community banks, which allows them to price fixed rates against their own deposit base. Since 2025, every one of their acquisition loans has been fixed-rate. Huntington National Bank is the fixed-rate volume leader with 18 loans across 11 states.

Historical Trends#

How SBA acquisition loan rates have changed quarter to quarter:

Variable spreads have stabilized at Prime + 2.00% for two consecutive quarters. The Q4 2025 → Q1 2026 drop was driven by the 25bps Prime Rate cut; Q1 → Q2 shows the market has absorbed that cut without further spread compression at the median. Note that Q4 2025 and Q1 2026 volumes were both depressed by the October-November 2025 government shutdown and its backlog effects. Q2 2026 is the first quarter of fully normalized SBA operations since Q3 2025.

About This Data#

This report analyzes loan-level data from SBA FOIA records, covering SBA 7(a) business acquisition loans disbursed during Q2 2026. We calculate spreads using the WSJ Prime Rate applicable at the time each loan was originated.