This is Eric Jordan, CPPA—Business Valuator, Intangible Asset Specialist, and Founder of PIN Services Ltd. Welcome to today’s episode where we take a close look at how the U.S. Small Business Administration is leading the charge in financing the real drivers of business value—intangibles—while Canadian banks continue to put up walls. Let’s get into it.
The United States has just shaken the foundations of small business financing. With the Made in America Manufacturing Finance Act, signed by President Donald Trump in 2025, a bold message has been sent: small businesses matter, and intangibles matter more than ever.
Backed by leaders like House Small Business Committee Chair Roger Williams, Senator Joni Ernst, and SBA Administrator Kelly Loeffler, this Act doubles the lending limits for manufacturers. It’s already working—manufacturing loans surged 74% within Trump’s first 100 days back in office.
The new U.S. policy raises the ceiling for loans under the SBA 7(a) and 504 programs to $14 million. And here’s the kicker: these funds aren’t just for equipment and real estate. Up to $1 million is believed to be allowed for intangible assets—things like patents, software code, customer relationships, and goodwill—pending SBA confirmation.
Now compare that to Canada.
Our Canada Small Business Financing Program (CSBFP) still caps loans at $1.15 million, and worse, only $150,000 can be used for intangibles. That’s a fraction of what modern businesses need. And Canadian banks? They’ve built a system of intangible blindness, misinterpreting asset sales and refusing to finance what matters most.
Let’s break this down.
There’s a huge difference between an asset sale and a share sale. In an asset sale, you buy the good parts—equipment, customer lists, intellectual property—without the company’s liabilities. In a share sale, you inherit everything, including potential lawsuits and tax risks. The U.S. SBA understands this. That’s why they’ll finance intangibles in an asset sale. Canadian banks? They don’t. They act as if only trucks and tools matter.
And that’s a problem.
Intangible assets aren’t just real—they’re critical. According to Ocean Tomo, the merchant bank in Chicago, 90% of the S&P 500’s value is intangible. That includes branding, systems, customer loyalty, software, and more. Yet Canadian banks remain focused on hard collateral, ignoring this overwhelming market reality.
Why? Because it’s profitable for them. Canadian banks like RBC and TD earn return on equity between 14% and 16%, far above the U.S. giants like JPMorgan or Bank of America, which typically return 10–13%. That extra profit often comes at the expense of small Canadian business owners, especially those whose businesses are built on people, ideas, and systems—not just property and equipment.
Here’s a concrete example: a software company with 20 clients, each under annual contract, may have almost no hard assets. But those client contracts are worth hundreds of thousands, possibly millions. Yet the bank will say: “Sorry, you don’t qualify for financing.” Why? Because they refuse to acknowledge intangible value.
Even worse, many banks actively discredit professional valuators—especially those like myself who specialize in intangible assets. Instead, they rely on rigid, outdated financial ratios and historical accounting metrics, which are completely irrelevant when trying to buy or finance a modern, service-based or tech-oriented business.
Let me be blunt: this is institutional roadblocking. It’s why Canada is falling behind in innovation, productivity, and small business competitiveness.
Meanwhile, in the U.S., the SBA is doing the opposite. They see intangibles as vital. Their 504 program is expanding to help small manufacturers build infrastructure. Their 7(a) program helps entrepreneurs buy businesses—including their intangible value. They’re saying, “We see you, we support you, and we know what your business is really worth.”
And it’s working. Kelly Loeffler put it best: “Small businesses are the backbone of our economy.” U.S. policy reflects that. Canadian policy does not.
Now, Canadian entrepreneurs are stuck in a bind. According to the Canadian Federation of Independent Business (CFIB), 80% of Canadian small businesses have been disrupted by U.S. tariffs. This makes access to flexible financing more important than ever. But what do our banks do? They default to rejection, or worse, offer expensive alternative lending options—draining profits from owners who are already struggling.
If Canada wants to compete—and if we want to keep our best and brightest here—we need to retrain our banking sector. We need to reform CSBFP. And we need to finally recognize the work of valuators who know how to identify, measure, weigh, and assign a dollar value to intangible assets.
At the core of this issue is one simple fact: intangibles are the future of business value. And anyone who ignores that—banks, policy makers, or advisors—is failing Canadian entrepreneurs.
Thanks for tuning in. This is Eric Jordan, CPPA. If you’re a business owner in Canada, or you’re trying to buy or sell a business and you’re hitting walls with banks.
Let’s bring real-world experience back into the valuation conversation—and let’s start giving intangible assets the value they deserve.
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