Field notes
Recent posts on real Q2 2026 bank data and lender selection.
Field notes · Q2 2026
The 50 US Banks With the Lowest Cost of Funds, Q2 2026
The cheapest funding in the country, and what the banks at the top of the list have in common.
Field notes · Q2 2026
The 50 US Banks With the Highest Tier 1 Leverage Ratio, Q2 2026
The most heavily capitalized banks over $500M, which is rarely the list people expect.
Field notes · Q2 2026
The 50 US Banks With the Highest ROA, Q2 2026
Who earned the most per dollar of assets last quarter, and how far ahead of their band they are.
Field notes · Q2 2026
The 50 US Banks With the Fastest Deposit Growth, Q2 2026
The fastest deposit growth in the country, with the asset column beside it so a merger is obvious.
Field notes · Q2 2026
The 50 US Banks With the Best Efficiency Ratio, Q2 2026
The leanest banks over $500M, ranked, with the median for each asset band beside them.
Reference
Glossary of bank financial terms
Forty-three terms, each with how it is calculated, what banks actually report today, and the mistake people make reading it.
Field notes · By state
Bank benchmarks for every state
How banks in your state compare with the national median on margin, funding cost, efficiency and return, plus the largest charters headquartered there.
Field notes · Q2 2026
The 50 US banks with the highest NIM, Q2 2026
A real ranking from FFIEC data. Why Utah industrial banks dominate the top of the list, and what it means for the median community bank.
Read more →
Borrower playbook
Which Texas banks will fund a $5M SBA 7(a) loan?
Six named TX-headquartered banks for a $5M SBA 7(a) scenario, plus the four signals we use to rank lenders for a borrower.
Read more →
Field notes · Q2 2026
Texas Capital vs Frost vs Prosperity: peer benchmarks for Q2 2026
Side-by-side comparison of three Texas commercial banks. One bank wins each category. None of them wins all of them.
Read more →Borrower playbook
How to shop a commercial loan without burning every bank in town
Pick the few banks that already make your kind of loan, send each one the same complete package, and compare terms in writing.
Read the playbook →
Borrower playbook
How to find the bank most likely to fund your loan
There are 4,297 US banks and they do not lend alike. The seven data signals that decide whether a bank funds your kind of deal, for any loan type or state.
Read more →Calculators
Free tools, no email, nothing saved. Run the numbers before you call a bank.
Borrower tools
SBA loan calculator
Monthly payment, total interest, the SBA guarantee fee, and a full amortization schedule for any loan amount, term, and rate.
Use the calculator →
Borrower tools
DSCR calculator
Debt service coverage ratio from your income and debt payment, plus the lender acceptance band your number falls in.
Use the calculator →Industry guides
Which banks actually fund your kind of business, with real Q2 2026 call report numbers.
Borrower playbook
Best SBA 7(a) lenders for restaurants in 2026
Six banks active in food-service lending, the underwriting hurdles unique to restaurants, and how to get a faster yes.
Read the guide →
Borrower playbook
Best SBA 7(a) lenders for dental practices in 2026
The banks that compete hardest for dental practice loans, what underwriters check on an acquisition, and how to get to yes.
Read the guide →
Borrower playbook
Best SBA 7(a) lenders for gas stations and c-stores in 2026
The banks that fund fuel and convenience deals, why environmental risk drives the whole thing, and how to get a faster yes.
Read the guide →
Borrower playbook
Best SBA 7(a) lenders for hotels and motels in 2026
Where hospitality deals get funded, why PIP reserves and flag agreements drive approval, and how to get a faster yes.
Read the guide →
Borrower playbook
Best SBA 7(a) lenders for medical clinics in 2026
The banks that compete for clinic and outpatient practice loans, what underwriters check, and how to get to yes faster.
Read the guide →Our writing
Original guides written by BankingLENS for analysts and operators.
Guide · For analysts
How to read a UBPR in 5 minutes
A non-examiner's walkthrough of the Uniform Bank Performance Report. Which pages to read, which to skip, and what to do with what you find.
Read guide →Guide · For borrowers
How to find banks that lend to your industry
Most borrowers spray applications at random banks. Here's how to figure out which banks actually lend in your category before you apply.
Read guide →Guide · For analysts
How to read a bank call report
The schedules worth learning first, in the order we read them, and the traps that catch new analysts.
Read guide →Guide · For analysts
Call report vs UBPR: what’s the difference?
What the bank files, what the FFIEC builds from it, and which one answers the question in front of you.
Read guide →Guide · For analysts
How to build a bank peer group
Start with the FFIEC groups, tighten them only when the board question needs it, and skip the comparisons that mislead.
Read guide →Comparison · For analysts
Bank peer benchmarking tools compared
BankRegData, Visbanking, OptimaFI, FedFis, BankRegReports and BankingLENS on price, history and credit union data.
Read guide →Guide · Credit unions
How to read a credit union call report
The NCUA 5300, part by part: where to get it free, what each schedule answers, and how it differs from a bank call report.
Read guide →Guide · Credit unions
Why credit union and bank ratios don’t compare directly
Taxes, net worth versus tier 1 capital, and loan-to-share versus loan-to-deposit, and what to compare instead.
Read guide →Guide · Credit unions
What is a credit union’s net worth ratio?
The 7% well capitalized line, risk-based capital for complex credit unions, and the 9% CCULR.
Read guide →Guide · Credit unions
Do credit unions count in deposit market share?
Why FDIC market share leaves them out, how county estimates work, and a Johnson County, Kansas example.
Read guide →Explainers
Short, plain-English answers to the questions analysts and operators actually ask. One concept per page.
Explainers
CRA ratings explained
Four grades, and 87% of banks hold the same one. What the grade measures, how the exam changes with size, and what a low one costs.
Explainers
Deposit market share by county
How the FDIC Summary of Deposits is built, why one county in South Dakota books $479 billion, and how to tell bought growth from won growth.
Explainers
How to read HMDA data
Who makes the mortgages in a county, lender by lender, and three rules for counting share and reading denial rates.
Explainers
FFIEC peer group codes explained
Every code, how many banks are in it, and where the groups are too coarse to tell you anything.
Explainers
Deposit beta, and how to calculate yours
The share of a rate move that reaches your funding cost, the call report lines that give it to you, and why the down beta lags.
Explainers
CAMELS ratings explained
What each component measures, what examiners test, and which public numbers move alongside a rating nobody can see.
Explainer
What is a UBPR?
Definition of the Uniform Bank Performance Report. What's on it, how it differs from a call report, where to download one.
Read explainer →Explainer
How do FFIEC peer groups work?
Eight commercial bank size groups since 2026, what percentile rank actually means, and why a $400M bank isn't compared to JPMorgan.
Read explainer →Explainer
What is a bank's efficiency ratio?
Formula, benchmarks, what a good number looks like, and the trends that actually matter.
Read explainer →Explainer
What is Tier 1 capital?
Plain-English definition, the formula, regulatory thresholds, and how Tier 1 differs from CET1.
Read explainer →Explainer
What is Net Interest Margin (NIM)?
Definition, formula, what a good NIM is, and how it behaves through a Fed rate cycle.
Read explainer →Worth reading elsewhere
Curated external references from the FFIEC, SBA, Federal Reserve, and industry analysts.
External · SBA.gov
SBA Preferred Lender Program (PLP) explained
The SBA's own page on its 7(a) loan programs, including PLP. The cleanest official source on what preferred-lender status actually changes.
Open on sba.govExternal · Federal Reserve
Large bank capital requirements (Tier 1 explained)
The Federal Reserve's official page on capital requirements. How Tier 1, CET1, and the leverage ratio fit together, plus current thresholds.
Open on federalreserve.govExternal · FFIEC
FFIEC peer group average report
How the FFIEC defines and computes peer groups in the UBPR. Useful reference for anyone trying to understand percentile rankings.
Open on ffiec.govExternal · Klaros Group
How (and why) to read a bank's call report
A solid third-party walkthrough of the call report schedules and what to look for. Written by Klaros, a banking consulting firm.
Open on klaros.comWant new posts in your inbox? Email hello@bankinglens.com and we'll add you to the list.