New data has pointed to larger loans, broader risk appetite, and a shift toward term facilities.
Brokerage Valiant Finance has analysed around 10,000 commercial settlements from FY26, finding that traditional banks pulled back while alternative and non‑bank lenders stepped forward, holding pricing steady but writing larger loans for a wider range of business borrowers.
The brokerage's overarching assessment is that commercial lending “shifted dramatically” in FY26, with the majors tightening while non-bank lenders showed “a massive appetite to deploy capital.”
This shift occurred against a volatile backdrop for the official cash rate.
Valiant noted that while the Reserve Bank of Australia (RBA) cut the cash rate to 3.6 per cent before lifting it back to 4.35 per cent by the final quarter of the financial year, commercial loan interest rates “remained remarkably stable.”
The brokerage was also struck by the behaviour of asset‑finance pricing, describing those rates as “remarkably consistent all year,” sitting in a narrow band between 10.9 and 11.2 per cent and ending the year with the median rate 0.3 basis points lower at 10.49 per cent.
Bigger working‑capital and asset‑finance deals
The data further indicated that businesses are seeking more capital, and that non‑bank lenders are increasingly willing to say “yes.”
Valiant observed “a massive year-on-year shift in average loan sizes,” led by unsecured working‑capital facilities.
These loans rose 20 per cent to an average of $58,000 and peaked at $67,000 in the fourth quarter.
Asset‑finance facilities followed a similar upward path and, according to Valiant, “comfortably outpaced inflation.”
The brokerage linked this growth to policy changes at banks, noting that “traditional banks tightening restrictions on businesses with tax debt” had created opportunities for non‑bank lenders to “aggressively expand their policies and streamline their rules to say ‘yes’ to larger amounts faster.”
Valiant added that FY26 “completely flipped the script” for younger businesses.
Where those businesses traditionally struggled to gain traction, settlement rates for asset‑finance transactions involving businesses aged six to 12 months climbed by 6 per cent from FY25 to FY26.
Risk views broaden beyond the credit score
Another major theme in the figures is a shift in lenders’ interpretation of personal credit scores.
Valiant noted that “a minor dip in a director’s credit score used to mean an automatic decline,” but said lenders were now taking an increasingly “holistic” view of risk.
The brokerage reported that settlement rates increased across all score bands.
Good scores (650–720) saw settlement rates rise by 4 per cent, average scores (460–650) by 7 per cent, and below‑average scores (459 or lower) by18 per cent.
Valiant added that settlement rates for customers with good credit scores now matched those achieved by borrowers with very good scores (740–850) just 12 months ago.
Term loans rise as revolving lines concentrate
The analysis also showed a structural change in product choice.
The brokerage said the data reflected a “distinct structural shift in how businesses choose to borrow capital,” with borrowers “prioritising certainty over flexibility.”
On the numbers, settled term loans increased by 13 per cent over the year, while revolving facilities fell by 18 per cent.
Yet the revolving lines that did settle were far from small: the average revolving loan size jumped 35 per cent to $82,000.
Valiant attributed this to lenders “changing their policies and widening their appetite across a larger range of clients.”
[Related: Bluestone flags major trends reshaping borrowers and credit]
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