Check a lender or platform

Which register to search

• Bank

  FDIC BankFind Suite (opens in a new tab)

  Finds FDIC-insured banks and their branches, from today back to 1934. Search by the bank's name and check that the address and website match.

• Credit union

  NCUA Credit Union Locator (opens in a new tab)

  The National Credit Union Administration's search for credit unions, by address, name or charter number, with a companion tool, Research a Credit Union, for more detail. The NCUA refreshes its data within two business days.

• SBA 504 lender

  SBA list of Certified Development Companies (opens in a new tab)

  504 loans are made only through Certified Development Companies, which the SBA certifies and regulates. The list can be filtered by the state served.

  • SBA Lender Match: lenders that offer SBA-approved loans (opens in a new tab)

• SBA microloan lender

  SBA list of microlenders (opens in a new tab)

  The intermediary lenders authorized to make loans in the SBA's microloan program, filtered by the state served.

• CDFI

  CDFI Fund list of certified CDFIs (opens in a new tab)

  Certification is a designation the CDFI Fund, part of the Treasury, gives to organizations that provide financial services in low-income communities and to people who lack access to financing. Certified CDFIs include community development banks and credit unions, and loan and venture capital funds. The list of currently certified CDFIs is a spreadsheet on this page.

• Broker-dealer

  FINRA BrokerCheck (opens in a new tab)

  Shows whether a firm or person is registered, as the law requires, to sell securities, offer investment advice or both. A report gives the firm's licenses and registrations, owners and history, and any arbitration awards, disciplinary events and complaints.

• Crowdfunding platform

  FINRA list of funding portals (opens in a new tab)

  A Regulation Crowdfunding platform must register with the SEC as a broker or as a funding portal and join FINRA. This list shows every funding portal FINRA regulates, with its SEC file number and website, and marks any that are suspended. A platform that is a broker-dealer is in BrokerCheck instead.

  • SEC EDGAR: a portal's filings (the FINRA list links to each one) (opens in a new tab)

• Investment adviser

  SEC Investment Adviser Public Disclosure (opens in a new tab)

  Search an adviser firm or a person and see their Form ADV, whether they are registered with the SEC or a state, and certain disciplinary events. It also says if a firm is a brokerage firm in BrokerCheck.

• State-licensed lender or broker

  NMLS Consumer Access (opens in a new tab)

  A free search to confirm that a financial services company or person is authorized to do business in your state. It draws on NMLS, the licensing system set up by the associations of state bank and mortgage regulators. Whether a business lender or broker needs a state license or registration depends on the state and the kind of finance. Texas, for example, takes registrations from providers and brokers of commercial sales-based financing through NMLS from September 1, 2026. Each route page lists the state laws for its kind of finance.

  • Find your state securities regulator (SEC, Investor.gov) (opens in a new tab)

Where to complain

• Federal Trade Commission

  ReportFraud.ftc.gov (opens in a new tab)

  Report fraud, scams and bad business practices, including a company. The FTC shares reports with more than 2,000 law enforcers. It cannot resolve your own report, but it uses reports to bring cases.

• Your state attorney general

  Find your attorney general (USAGov) (opens in a new tab)

  The top legal officer in your state or territory. USAGov lists every state's and territory's office.

• FINRA and the SEC

  File a complaint with FINRA (opens in a new tab)

  If a brokerage firm or someone working for one treated you unfairly, raise it with the firm first, then with FINRA. Report a fraudulent or unregistered offer or sale of securities to the SEC.

  • SEC: report suspected securities fraud (opens in a new tab)

• SBA Office of Inspector General

  SBA's fraud reporting page (opens in a new tab)

  Report scams, suspicious activity or misuse of federal money in SBA programs, and what to do if someone took out an SBA loan in your name.

Your business in public records

What lenders and investors can find about your own business: its filings with the SEC (a Form D, Form C or Regulation A filing shows an earlier raise from investors) and, for a business registered in New York or Colorado, the state's own record of it (its type, status and formation date). What you type goes to them through our server and is not logged or stored. For the federal contracts, grants and SBA loans it has had, the results link to USAspending.gov's own search. Search for a business, not a person. Privacy

Worth knowing

• ›Check that the website, phone number and email match the register. Scammers pose as real firms and professionals with fake websites, messaging apps, emails and social media profiles.
• ›The SEC does not approve or endorse any security, firm or person, and does not let private firms use its seal. An offer that claims SEC approval is a warning sign.
• ›Check that the firm is registered for what it is offering you, not just listed somewhere. BrokerCheck, for example, says whether a firm may sell securities, give investment advice or both.