The small business lending landscape has long been plagued by inefficiencies that disadvantage both lenders and borrowers. Traditional approval processes often take weeks, demand excessive documentation, and rely heavily on personal credit scores that may not accurately reflect business health. This outdated approach has left a financing gap that particularly affects minority and women-owned businesses.
I recently spoke with Adlon Adams, CEO and co-founder of Casca, about how his company is reshaping small business lending through technology. Their platform aims to make capital more accessible while maintaining robust risk assessment standards—a balancing act that has challenged the industry for decades.
“The traditional lending process wasn’t designed with today’s small businesses in mind,” Adams explained during our conversation. “When a business owner needs capital to seize an opportunity, waiting weeks for approval isn’t viable.”
Casca’s approach centers on what Adams calls “adaptive underwriting”—a system that expands beyond FICO scores to incorporate real-time business performance data. By analyzing cash flow patterns, invoicing history, and other operational metrics, their algorithm builds a more comprehensive risk profile than conventional methods.
Federal Reserve data highlights why this matters: nearly 40% of small businesses seeking financing report significant challenges in the application process. For minority-owned businesses, this figure jumps to over 50%, according to the 2022 Small Business Credit Survey.
Adams points to time as the critical factor. “In our early research, we found the average small business loan took 29 days from application to funding. We’ve reduced that to hours in most cases,” he noted.
This acceleration doesn’t come at the expense of due diligence. Rather, Casca automates data collection through API connections to accounting software, payment processors, and banking platforms. The system continuously updates borrower profiles, enabling what the company calls “progressive credit”—lending terms that can improve as business performance strengthens.
What particularly caught my attention was Casca’s focus on reducing bias in lending decisions. The financial services industry has faced increasing scrutiny over disparities in loan approvals across demographic groups. By emphasizing business performance metrics over personal credit histories, Casca claims to have narrowed approval rate gaps.
“When lenders over-rely on personal credit scores, they inadvertently perpetuate historical inequities,” Adams said. “Our data shows businesses with similar cash flow and operating histories should qualify for similar financing, regardless of the founder’s background.”
Goldman Sachs research supports this approach. Their 2023 report on small business financing found that alternative data sources could potentially expand credit access to underserved entrepreneurs by 20-30% without increasing default rates.
The platform also addresses another pain point: application complexity. Casca’s interface allows businesses to connect their financial accounts and complete applications in under 15 minutes, compared to the industry average of 5-6 hours spent gathering documentation.
For lenders, the system promises improved efficiency through standardized data collection and automated initial assessments. Community banks and credit unions, which approve nearly half of small business loans nationally according to FDIC statistics, stand to benefit significantly from these technological tools.
Adams acknowledged challenges remain, particularly around data privacy and security. “We’re handling sensitive financial information, so we’ve invested heavily in encryption and compliance infrastructure,” he explained. The company maintains SOC 2 compliance and conducts regular security audits.
Looking forward, Casca plans to expand beyond lending into cash flow management tools. “We’re building toward a comprehensive platform that helps businesses not just access capital, but optimize how they use it,” Adams shared.
Industry analysts at Cornerstone Advisors note this type of integration represents the future of small business financial services. Their recent market analysis predicts embedded financial tools could capture up to 30% of the SMB banking market by 2025.
The ultimate test for innovations like Casca’s will be performance during economic downturns. Previous fintech lending models have sometimes struggled when faced with recession conditions. Adams contends their continuous monitoring approach provides early warning signs of potential problems, allowing for proactive intervention.
“Traditional lenders typically check in annually during loan reviews. We’re evaluating performance signals daily,” he said.
For small business owners who have historically struggled with financing, these developments represent potential breakthrough access to capital. While no system can eliminate risk entirely, approaches that expand beyond traditional credit evaluation offer promising paths toward more inclusive business financing.
As someone who’s covered financial innovation for nearly two decades, I’ve seen countless “revolutionary” lending platforms come and go. What makes Casca’s approach noteworthy is its focus on balancing efficiency with responsible risk assessment—recognizing that faster lending must also be sustainable lending.
The true measure of success will be whether these innovations genuinely expand access to capital for businesses that drive local economic growth. If companies like Casca can deliver on their promises, we may finally see meaningful progress in closing the small business financing gap.
