Encore Bank: SBA Lending Profile
Encore Bank is an FDIC-insured bank, headquartered in Little Rock, AR. It is active in 15 states, concentrated around TX, FL, AR. Everything below comes from federal SBA loan records, not from the lender's marketing. This is what it has actually funded.
Loan sizes Encore Bank actually approves
The median SBA approval at Encore Bank is $457,000. The middle 80% of its loans fall between $100,000 and $1,755,600. The smallest funded approval in the available source window is $15,000 and the largest is $4,550,000. If the amount you need sits far outside that range, this is probably not the right first call, no matter what the website says.
Programs
| Program | Loans FY25-26 | Median size | Median rate | Median term |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| SBA 7(a) | 52 | $457K | 9.25% | 10 years |
| 504 first mortgage (third party) | 3 | $1.3M | n/a | 25 years |
Industries it funds most
| Industry | Funded loans in source data | Share |
|---|---|---|
| Beauty Salons | 10 | 7.3% |
| Limited-Service Restaurants | 9 | 6.6% |
| Other Services to Buildings and Dwellings | 9 | 6.6% |
| Full-Service Restaurants | 7 | 5.1% |
| Pharmacies and Drug Retailers | 5 | 3.6% |
| Fitness and Recreational Sports Centers | 5 | 3.6% |
| Offices of All Other Miscellaneous Health Practitioners | 4 | 2.9% |
| All Other Amusement and Recreation Industries | 4 | 2.9% |
| Other Computer Related Services | 4 | 2.9% |
| Commercial Printing (except Screen and Books) | 3 | 2.2% |
| Highway, Street, and Bridge Construction | 3 | 2.2% |
| Public Relations Agencies | 3 | 2.2% |
How fast Encore Bank actually funds
Approval is not money in the bank. Across 127 loans where both dates are on record, the typical gap between SBA approval and first disbursement at Encore Bank is 28 days. Half its loans fund between 13 and 50 days. The typical SBA lender takes about 20 days, so this is roughly in line with the market.
Lending momentum
Encore Bank has been pulling back. Approvals are down 38.9% from FY2023 to FY2025, which can mean tightened credit or a shift in strategy. Worth asking about before you invest time in an application.
Funded approvals by SBA fiscal year (October to September). FY2026 is excluded because it is still in progress.
Conventional small business lending, beyond SBA
SBA loans are a fraction of most banks' small business lending. Under the Community Reinvestment Act, Encore Bank reported 523 small business loan originations in 2024, totaling $143M, at an average of about $274K per loan across 22 states. 62% of those loans went to businesses with under $1M in annual revenue.
Borrower profile
- 56.9% of its funded SBA records with known business age went to startups or businesses under two years old, which is high, most SBA lenders skew heavily toward established companies.
- Collateral was taken on 74.5% of its recent SBA loans.
- 24.8% of its SBA lending is revolving lines of credit rather than term loans.
- 0.7% of its loans carry fixed rates; the rest are variable.
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Sources and limits. Figures are derived from U.S. Small Business Administration 7(a) and 504 FOIA loan-level records (data as of 2026-06-30, retrieved 2026-08-08) and FDIC public institution data. Conventional small business lending figures from FFIEC CRA disclosure data (2024 activity year); CRA loan counts include business credit card originations at some institutions. Funding speed is the median gap between approval date and first disbursement date in SBA records. Some lenders report disbursement at month end, which can round the figure upward. They describe past lending activity only. They are not rate quotes, not current offers, and not an indication that any business will qualify. Lender programs and criteria change. Big Brain Funding is not affiliated with or endorsed by Encore Bank.