Parlay partners with nCino to simplify SBA loan process

By Divya Shah

Why it matters: For FinTechs, it demonstrates the growing demand for embedded AI solutions that reduce operational costs, improve underwriting efficiency and help financial institutions scale lending programmes while expanding SME access to capital.

Parlay, the AI-native Loan Intelligence System (LIS), and nCino, the platform for agentic AI banking, have partnered to streamline intake for America’s 1,400 Small Business Administration (SBA) lenders. Parlay now connects directly into nCino’s Commercial and Small Business Solutions, replacing the manual paperwork that has slowed SBA lending for decades. 

Parlay’s integration with nCino is live and has already processed more than $500 million in SBA loan inquiries in 2026 for customers including First Internet Bank, a nationwide SBA lender known for helping entrepreneurs access capital to grow their businesses.  

Alex McLeod, co-founder and CEO of Parlay, said, “Hundreds of financial institutions nationwide have told us they want to scale their SBA lending programmes. Partnering with nCino enables Parlay to provide a powerful, complementary, and integrated offering: no rip-and-replace required, so more small businesses across the country gain faster access to capital.”  

Parlay’s agentic technology connects to nCino through a one-click handoff that handles intake, eligibility, and deal structuring before a banker ever opens the file. Lenders using Parlay can screen deals faster and close loans in less time. Existing customers of Parlay have noted the manual work needed to reach a credit-ready file dropped by up to 80%.   

Chris Gufford, Chief Product Officer at nCino, said, “Lenders already trust nCino’s intelligent experience to run SBA lending with confidence. Now, paired with Parlay, they get even more: agentic capabilities that help them move eligible borrowers to approval faster and fund more small businesses.”   

With the partnership, nCino and Parlay are closing a long-standing capital access gap for lenders on every Main Street in America. Small businesses generate 43% of U.S. GDP, and too many still don’t fit a bank’s standard credit box. Community banks and credit unions can now launch and scale SBA programmes without building a back office first.  

High-volume SBA lenders now free up specialist hours for credit judgement instead of paperwork, putting capital in the hands of businesses that earn it but don’t fit the mould. 

Under the agreement, nCino will resell and support Parlay’s LIS as an offering for customers prioritizing SBA, and Parlay will continue to serve the broader SBA lending market directly. nCino is offering the integration along with in-branch SBA lending capabilities to its new and existing customer base.