Huntington Bank (SBA lending) vs Wells Fargo (SBA lending)
Which big bank belongs on an SBA acquisition shortlist?
Huntington Bank (SBA lending)
The most prolific SBA 7(a) lender in the country by number of loans (its own October 2024 release marks a seventh straight year at #1 by count), a large regional bank whose branch-based SBA practice writes thousands of small-business loans a year, including business acquisitions.
Custom pricing · Loan products; no fee to engage. SBA 7(a) up to the $5M program cap. The bank's own release reports 7,577 loans totaling about $1.53B in its fiscal 2024, an average near $200k, so volume skews to smaller loans than acquisition-specialist banks. Rates are quoted per deal and not published.
- Highest 7(a) loan count in the country for seven consecutive years, per its own investor-relations release
- Process honed on thousands of loans a year; SBA is a core line of business, not a side desk
- Full commercial-bank relationship (deposits, treasury, lines) available after close
- Branch-driven and strongest in its home region; the process is not built as a nationwide remote experience
- Average loan size near $200k means the machine is tuned for smaller loans; a $2M+ acquisition may get more pattern recognition at a specialist bank
- No dedicated searcher or acquisition lending page, so expect to educate your banker on search-style structures
Verified Jul 11, 2026 · Full review →
Wells Fargo (SBA lending)
The SBA 7(a) and 504 program of one of the largest US banks, running a top-15 7(a) book by dollars with nationwide branch coverage; a conventional big-bank SBA desk rather than an acquisition specialist.
Custom pricing · Loan products; no fee to engage. Rates are quoted per deal and not published. FOIA-based FY2025 roundups report roughly $479M across about 1,335 7(a) loans, averaging near $359K; treat third-party figures as directional.
- Top-15 7(a) volume nationally with the balance sheet and branch network of a money-center bank
- Existing commercial customers can leverage relationship history that a stranger bank cannot see
- Runs 504 alongside 7(a), useful when real estate is part of the deal
- No dedicated searcher or acquisition practice; goodwill-heavy searcher deals are the exception, not the lane
- Roundups describe approval as conservative and slow relative to specialist acquisition banks
- Experience varies by branch and banker, with no published acquisition terms to hold it to
Verified Jul 12, 2026 · Full review →
Our take
Choose Huntington inside its nine-state footprint: the highest 7(a) loan count in the country for years running, branch relationships that know the program, and comfort with smaller loans.
Choose Wells Fargo only if you already bank there commercially; the relationship history is the product, and a cold application is better spent on a specialist acquisition lender.