Access to bank financing for companies - 2026-Q1
Published on 5th of May 2026
Conditions remain favorable for companies' access to investment loans, but they are tightening slightly for cash flow loans.
- In the first quarter of 2026, investment loan applications declined for mid-sized companies (MSCs) but remained stable for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs). French businesses' access to investment loans remains generally favourable, with high loan approval rates. However, approval rates for cash flow loans have fallen for both MSCs and SMEs.
- While cash loan applications were stable at 6% for SMEs, they declined slightly this quarter for MSCs (from 7% to 5%).
- The share of companies reporting an increase in the overall cost of credit has risen for MSCs (up 8 percentage points) and SMEs (up 8 percentage points), confirming the trend observed since the second quarter of 2025.
NB: This survey covers bank loans only; some companies also have access to market financing options, which offer funding solutions not included in this survey.
Data not seasonally adjusted, in %; excluding use of previously granted credit lines
Scope: companies with autonomy to decide on credit applications: SMEs = 10 - 249 employees; MSCs = 250 - 4999 employees
Scope: companies with autonomy to decide on credit applications: SMEs = 10 - 249 employees; MSCs = 250 - 4999 employees
New investment loans
- The share of companies applying for new investment loans fell to 24% for MSCs and remained stable at 19% for SMEs in Q1 2026 (see Chart 1).
- The approval rates for these loan applications were very high for both SMEs and MSCs: 98% of SMEs and 93% of mid-sized companies that applied for a loan obtained it in full or for more than 75% of the amount requested (see Chart 2).
New cash flow loans
- The share of companies applying for new cash flow loans remained stable at 6% for SMEs, while it fell to 5% for MSCs (see Chart 3).
- For these loans, the approval rate in full or for more than 75% of the amount requested fell in the last quarter. SMEs saw their approval rate decline from 85% to 82%, and MSCs from 85% to 80% (see Chart 4).
Complements
1 - Credit lines
For operational needs, SMEs and MSCs can apply (usually at the beginning of the year) for credit lines granting them drawing rights throughout the year.
- Loan applications have remained stable for several quarters across all company sizes: almost one-third of SMEs and nearly half of MSCs requested new credit lines over the past twelve months (see Chart 5).
- These requests continue to be largely granted (in full or for more than 75% of the amount requested) in over 90% of cases for both SMEs and MSCs.
- 53% of SMEs drew on their credit lines and this share is stable when compared with the previous quarter; 63% of MSCs drew on their credit lines and this share has known a slight 1 percentage point increase compared with Q4 2025.
2- Approval rate for new equipment loan
Among investment loans, equipment loans are intended to finance intangible or tangible assets, excluding real estate.
- Approval rates for equipment loans (granted in full or for more than 75% of the requested amount) remain high for SMEs, at 94%. After increasing by 5 percentage points over the previous quarter, it dropped slightly for MSCs to 89% (see Chart 6).
3- Evolution of the cost of credit
- In Q1 2026, 78% of SMEs and MSCs reported that the overall cost of credit had either remained stable or decreased (see Chart 7).
- Compared to the former quarter, the share of companies reporting a decrease in the overall cost of credit compared to the previous quarter fell from 12% to 7% for SMEs, and from 16% to 7% for MSCs.
- The share of companies reporting an increase in the overall cost of credit compared to the previous quarter increased by 8 percentage points for SMEs and for MSCs, rising from 13% to 21%.
- A majority of companies (72% of SMEs and 71% of MSCs) reported that the overall cost of credit remained stable in Q1 2026, virtually unchanged compared to the previous quarter.
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Updated on the 4th of May 2026