Best Loans Websites

There are many kinds of loans that banks offer to the general public. It can be safely said that a bank exists primarily in the business of lending money, rather than the taking of deposits from its depositors (the usual viewpoint). Strictly speaking, from a legal standpoint, banks are mere payment agents for its customers/depositors.

Loans can be variously defined depending on its purpose, term, tenor, and amount. We usually approach a bank and apply for a loan when we intend to buy something but we do not have enough funds to make an outright cash purchase. Big corporations and other businesses essentially do the same thing like individuals, that is, borrow money from its bankers, because they do not have enough funds for whatever they plan to do, such as expand their business, enter new markets, have their receivables re-financed, update their equipment or buy out their competitors. Interest revenues from loans are the banks’ main source of income, its bread and butter. Income from its other banking activities and services as mentioned earlier is usually only a small portion of a bank’s total income. It is income that is generated from loans it had granted to its borrowers that usually forms the bulk of any respectable bank’s profits.

Site 1:  http://en.wikipedia.org
This popular website contains enough information for a novice to know about the basics of banking and its different forms and variations. It also has several vitally important links to related topics, such as the tax treatment and tax implications of a loan. However, some of its information needs to be verified further by consulting other more reliable sources, such as textbooks on banking and finance or economics. The site gives the definitions of some of the important terms used in banking, and other common words related to the banking industry. The user of this site is well-advised to augment and supplement his knowledge with input from other sources of information.

Site 2:  http://www.adb.org
This site contains the Manual of Lending Policies maintained by the Asian Development Bank. The ADB’s lending principles are in this so-called bible when it extends various types of loans to its developing member countries (DMCs). This lending manual incorporates the usual provisions of lending that ordinary commercial banks also impose on their customers, except that the ADB lends out its funds to countries and not to individuals. This operations manual (OM) states in general terms the criteria of the ADB when granting loans to member countries, such as project feasibility, financial viability, and also the creditworthiness of the proposed borrower.

Site 3:  http://www.allbusiness.com
This is an excellent site for small business enterprises to visit, especially when contemplating of availing of a loan from a traditional bank. It outlines the necessary steps a medium-sized business has to take to facilitate the approval of a loan request. This outline includes preparing a sound business plan to ensure repayment prospects, the documents required for submission in order to evaluate loan requests, and the “hard collaterals” that a prospective borrower can provide as a back-up in the event of default. This site also has many links to topics related to the banking industry. Lastly, this site is well-organized in terms of its subject matter and other sub-topics.