CFPB Rewrites Small-Business Lending Data Rule, Narrows Coverage and Sets 2028 Start

The agency frames the scaled-back approach as a cleaner first build to protect data quality.

Overview

The proposal raises the reporting threshold to 1,000 small-business originations in both 2026 and 2027, with a single compliance date of January 1, 2028 for institutions above that level.
Coverage shifts to core products by excluding revenue‑based financing labeled as merchant cash advances, agricultural lending, and loans of $1,000 or less, and it exempts Farm Credit System lenders.
The rule limits initial reporting to statutory data plus a few enabling items and removes discretionary fields such as pricing details, denial reasons, application method and recipient, and number of workers.
Demographic collection would drop the LGBTQI+‑owned business data point and require a static male/female sex field for principal owners while keeping race and ethnicity reporting and reinforcing applicants’ right to refuse.
Comments are due by December 15, 2025, and a DOJ Office of Legal Counsel opinion indicating potential CFPB funding limits after December 31 could slow rulemaking and oversight early next year.