The lender the borrower first contracts with, which then sells participations in the loan to other lenders and stays in the loan itself.
NCUA’s participation rule defines the originating lender as the participant with which the borrower initially or originally contracts for a loan and who, thereafter or concurrently with the funding of the loan, sells participations to other lenders.
For a borrower this is the lender on the note and the one you deal with. It takes the request, underwrites it, closes it and decides how much to keep.
It cannot sell the whole loan as a participation. Where a credit union NCUA supervises is the buyer, a federal credit union that originates must keep at least 10 percent of the outstanding balance through the life of the loan. Any other kind of originating lender must keep at least 5 percent, or more if state law says so. The written participation agreement states the share kept, where the original loan documents are held, and who holds them.
When a request is larger than the lender you approach can hold, it is fair to ask whether it would originate the loan and sell part of it, and how long lining up buyers usually takes.
How it shows up in the data here
The 5300 fields used here show which credit unions buy participations, not which lenders sell them, so this site cannot name the originating lender on any participated loan. A credit union's commercial loans made in the first half of 2026 (granted or purchased) are on its row and in credit union commercial loans made; that figure mixes loans it originated with loans it bought.
Go further
- Credit union commercial loans made: Ranked by commercial loans granted or purchased in the first half of 2026.
- Credit unions that buy participations: Bought in the first half of 2026 or held at June 30, 2026.
- Loan participations, explained: A participation lets one lender make a loan that is too large for it to hold alone. The borrower signs with one lender. Behind that lender, others own pieces of the loan and share its risk.
- How to place a business loan with a credit union: Credit unions make business loans, and some make a lot of them. Three things are different from a bank: the borrower must be a member, most credit unions work under a cap on business loans, and the limit to one borrower is set against net worth.
Related terms
- Loan participation: A loan in which other lenders buy shares from the lender that made it, under a written agreement that keeps the first lender in the loan for its whole life.
- Participant lender: A lender that buys a share of a loan another lender originated. It takes part of the credit exposure, usually without dealing with the borrower directly.
- Originator: An originator is the person, or the lender, that brings in a loan request and carries it through to closing.
- Loan servicing: The work of running a loan after it closes: collecting payments, releasing draws, tracking the borrower's reporting and collateral, and handling changes or a default.
- Credit union single borrower limit: The most a credit union may lend in commercial loans to one borrower or group of associated borrowers: the greater of 15 percent of its net worth or $100,000.
Sources
- 12 CFR 701.22, Loan participations, retrieved .
Plain definitions for orientation, not legal, tax or credit advice. A lender's own policy decides what it will do.