SBA Lending in Chicago, Illinois
The SBA FOIA record lists 11,855 7(a) approvals worth $3.1B for businesses in Chicago, IL, and annual volume has fallen 7% versus the prior decade.
- 11,855
- 7(a) loans
- $3.1B
- Approved dollars
- $262,234
- Average loan size
- #1
- Rank in Illinois
- -7%
- Annualized vs prior decade
- 7.7%
- Active-status distress
Chicago is the #1 SBA 7(a) market in Illinois and #4 in the country. Since 1991 the FOIA record lists 11,855 approvals here worth $3.1B, averaging $262,234 each. Annual approval volume has fallen 7% between FY2013-2019 and FY2020-2026. Among 1,965 active-status loans, 7.7% are delinquent, past due, or in liquidation. The local business type with the most listed records is full-service restaurants.
What Chicago borrows for
Who lends in Chicago
Open the national map, drill into Illinois, and compare Chicago against every zip code in the state.
Open the interactive map ↗7(a) loans only, approved and not cancelled, gross basis, grouped by the borrower's city as filed. Active-status distress counts DELINQ, PSTDUE, or LIQUID loans as a share of CURR, DELINQ, PSTDUE, LIQUID, or DEFERD loans. Approval is not funding. FOIA record as of March 31, 2026. Methodology.