Cross River Partners with SmartBiz for BaaS-Powered SBA Lending
Cross River Bank, a technology-driven financial services provider, announced a Banking-as-a-Service sponsor bank partnership with SmartBiz on July 12, 2022. Under the arrangement, Cross River provides backend financial services and core banking infrastructure while SmartBiz contributes its AI-powered digital application for streamlined SBA 7(a) loan processing. Cross River leverages its proprietary real-time banking core to deliver scalable embedded lending solutions as part of the deal.
The partnership is designed to accelerate funding access for U.S. small businesses by improving efficiency and transparency in the SBA loan process. SmartBiz handles the customer-facing technology layer while Cross River acts as the sponsor bank managing regulatory and financial backend operations. Financial terms of the partnership were not disclosed.
The collaboration positions both firms to capture demand among small businesses seeking faster, more digital-native access to government-backed financing.
- Reinforces Cross River's position as a leading BaaS sponsor bank in the embedded lending space
- Demonstrates growing fintech-bank collaboration to digitize and accelerate government-backed SME lending programs