The KfW-ifo Credit Hurdle Q2/2026 confirms the clear trend:
Bank lending is becoming increasingly restrictive!
The study published by KfW on 9 July 2026 confirms what we have been observing in the financing market for some time.
I quote from the study (link in the comments):
"Access to credit for companies seeking financing continues to tighten. Credit barriers for the SME sector have reached a new all-time high. As many as four in ten SMEs now find themselves confronted with restrictive lending standards from banks."
"Credit access for SMEs historically restrictive
The series of negative records in the KfW-ifo Credit Hurdle for SMEs continues. Following the peak in the fourth quarter of 2025 and the only slight easing that followed, 40.5% of mid-sized companies reported restrictive lending behaviour by banks in the second quarter of 2026.
This increase of 6.5 percentage points compared to the previous quarter marked a new record high since the survey records began in 2017.
Among larger, credit-seeking companies, 32.9% (+3.8 pp) reported restrictive standards from banks. This is the second-highest share ever recorded among large companies since data collection began.
The fact that an increasing number of businesses are affected by stricter lending can be attributed to the growing impact of economic weakness on balance sheets. As the results of the 2026 corporate survey show, companies report that their equity positions and credit ratings deteriorated over the past year.
Financial institutions typically respond to this with higher risk premiums and tighter financing conditions."
This development is entirely in line with expectations, given
🔹 the declining equity base of companies (and not all 2025 financial statements have yet reached the banks),
🔹 tightened regulation (Basel IV), and
🔹 current write-downs and loan defaults.
What is particularly concerning is that we cannot identify any reason why this trend should not continue.
👉 You can, however, take action — diversify your financing, make it more resilient, and reduce its cost!
👉 Deploy your assets in a risk-mitigating way and finance through leasing and sale & leaseback!
👉 Lenders, credit agencies, and suppliers view your equity ratio as a key metric!
You can improve it through leasing!
Let's talk!
The KfW-ifo Credit Hurdle Q2/2026 confirms the clear trend:
