{"ok":true,"canonical_url":"https://dealroom.so/glossary/affiliated-businesses","api_url":"https://dealroom.so/api/public/glossary/affiliated-businesses","data_freshness":{"sba_records_through":"2026-05-31","fdic_records_through":"2026-03-31","dealroom_last_updated":"2026-06-15","timezone":"America/Chicago"},"source_summary":["Public SBA 7(a) loan records","FDIC institution data","DealRoom lender and franchise enrichment"],"term":{"slug":"affiliated-businesses","term":"Affiliated businesses","group":"Reading the business","definition":"These are businesses related by ownership or control. The SBA combines their financials and employee counts to determine if you meet size standards and other eligibility criteria.","what_it_means":"The SBA applies strict affiliation rules to prevent larger businesses from using the 7(a) program. If the seller has other businesses where they hold significant ownership or control, the SBA will aggregate their revenues and employee counts with the target business. This can impact the SBA size standard and eligibility for the loan. Your lender will scrutinize this carefully.","url":"https://dealroom.so/glossary/affiliated-businesses","official_sources":[{"slug":"13-cfr-part-120","title":"13 CFR Part 120 — Business Loans","official_url":"https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-13/chapter-I/part-120","official_label":"View on eCFR","authority_tier":1,"publisher":"Office of the Federal Register","source_guide_url":"https://dealroom.so/sba-7a/sources/13-cfr-part-120"},{"slug":"sop-50-10","title":"SOP 50 10 — Lender and Development Company Loan Programs","official_url":"https://www.sba.gov/document/sop-50-10-lender-development-company-loan-programs","official_label":"View on SBA.gov","authority_tier":2,"publisher":"U.S. Small Business Administration","source_guide_url":"https://dealroom.so/sba-7a/sources/sop-50-10"}],"related":[{"slug":"affiliation","term":"Affiliation","url":"https://dealroom.so/glossary/affiliation"},{"slug":"size-standard","term":"Size standard","url":"https://dealroom.so/glossary/size-standard"},{"slug":"common-management","term":"Common management","url":"https://dealroom.so/glossary/common-management"},{"slug":"naics-code","term":"NAICS code","url":"https://dealroom.so/glossary/naics-code"}],"related_questions":[{"question":"Are businesses with shared facilities or equipment considered affiliated for SBA size standards?","url":"https://dealroom.so/for-lenders/questions/are-businesses-with-shared-facilities-or-equipment-considered-affiliated-for-sba-size-stan"},{"question":"What specific criteria determine if two businesses are affiliated due to 'identity of interest' for size standards?","url":"https://dealroom.so/for-lenders/questions/what-specific-criteria-determine-if-two-businesses-are-affiliated-due-to-identity-of-inter"},{"question":"How does the SBA determine if multiple businesses are affiliated for size standard purposes based on common ownership?","url":"https://dealroom.so/for-lenders/questions/how-does-the-sba-determine-if-multiple-businesses-are-affiliated-for-size-standard-purpose"},{"question":"What is the maximum loan amount an affiliated group of businesses can receive under the 7(a) program?","url":"https://dealroom.so/for-lenders/questions/what-is-the-maximum-loan-amount-an-affiliated-group-of-businesses-can-receive-under-the-7-"},{"question":"What is the maximum amount of money a single borrower or group of affiliated businesses can owe across all SBA 7(a) loans?","url":"https://dealroom.so/sba-7a/questions/what-is-the-maximum-amount-of-money-a-single-borrower-or-group-of-affiliated-businesses-ca"},{"question":"How does the SBA determine 'small business' size for an applicant with multiple affiliated entities?","url":"https://dealroom.so/for-lenders/questions/how-does-the-sba-determine-small-business-size-for-an-applicant-with-multiple-affiliated-e"}]},"caveats":["Definitions represent DealRoom's plain-English interpretation for buyers; verify regulatory terms against the official SBA and eCFR sources listed.","Not legal, tax, or financial advice, and not an SBA eligibility determination."],"citation":{"label":"DealRoom.so Glossary — Affiliated businesses","url":"https://dealroom.so/glossary/affiliated-businesses","source_type":"DealRoom Data"}}