What Bankers Don't Tell You: Underwriting
This is Part 1 of our 5-part “What Bankers Don’t Tell You” series
We’re pulling back the curtain on what really happens when companies request a commercial loan—and why CFOs and business owners need to start protecting themselves.
What Your Banker Says:
“Let me send your financials to underwriting to see what they think.”
What It Really Means:
“I don’t know if you qualify. But I’m trained not to tell you that—so I’ll just send it up and hope.”
The Truth Most CFOs Never Hear
It feels like progress when your banker says they’re sending your financials to underwriting. But in reality, that phrase often signals something very different:
They don’t know if your request will pass.
Most frontline commercial bankers don’t have underwriting authority. They aren’t equipped to analyze your DSCR, cash flow patterns, or industry risk. They’re trained to collect documents and forward them upstream—not to make credit decisions, and definitely not to guide you strategically.
This is how business owners unknowingly get set up for a long wait, a vague response, and ultimately a quiet decline.
What Happens After You Submit
When your financials hit underwriting, here’s what really goes on:
No context from the banker about your goals, strategy, or seasonality
Numbers are judged on face value—often without clean formatting
If anything’s off (TTM DSCR, leverage, or liquidity), your request goes cold
The worst part?
Everything your banker submitted gets logged into the bank’s internal CRM—forever.
If your loan gets declined today, that CRM will reflect the issues discussed, the ratios reviewed, and the reasoning used… even if you apply again years later with stronger performance.
That’s exactly why Green Zone exists.
Avoiding the CRM Trap
At Green Zone, we’ve seen this play out again and again. A business owner submits “okay” financials to a bank. No one raises a red flag. The deal gets declined—quietly. And the company doesn’t realize it just created a record that could hurt them for years.
That’s why we insist our clients never send anything to a bank until we’ve:
Completed full underwriting analysis internally
Identified and addressed issues with DSCR, EBITDA, or covenants
Built a capital memo that speaks a lender’s language
This recent insight breaks down what happens when companies assume renewals or loan requests are automatic. They’re not—and delays can become rejections without warning.
Real Example: A Manufacturer’s Costly Assumption
We recently worked with a $7MM Midwest manufacturer whose controller sent a renewal request to their bank based on last year’s package. Their banker said, “We’ll just send it to underwriting.”
Three weeks later, they were declined. Why?
Negative trailing twelve-month EBITDA
No analysis on aged AR
Working capital strain not explained
All of it got logged. And when we were brought in, the CRM already painted them as a high-risk borrower.
We rebuilt their financials and introduced them to a non-bank lender who approved a $2MM revolver based on our underwriting.
But the stain with the original bank will linger indefinitely.
This Is Why We Say: Don’t DIY Your Capital Request
Green Zone exists to be the first call—not the fix-it call. We provide the insight and financial firepower most bankers can’t (and won’t).
We help you:
Structure your request with confidence
Identify what your banker won’t say out loud
Get lenders to say yes the first time
If your current lender is stalling or vague, it’s not because they’re unsure—it’s because they’re not equipped (or allowed) to tell you the truth.
Learn why banks don’t help you fix DSCR problems—and why we do
Before You Submit Another Loan Package, Talk to Us.
Green Zone acts as your capital partner, preparing your credit request as if we were on the lender’s credit committee—because we used to be.
