NerdWallet Reports Decline in Small Business Loans as AI Drives New Referrals

NerdWallet reported a decline in small business loan originations in Q1 2025, attributing the trend to tight underwriting standards and trade policy uncertainty. This aligns with the company's earlier statements, as noted in a previous report.

Key Takeaways:

• AI-Driven Traffic Shift: NerdWallet, historically reliant on Google search rankings, is adapting to the rise of AI-powered answer engines. CEO Tim Chen noted that AI agents are now referring business to NerdWallet, with the company receiving a higher share of referral traffic from AI sources compared to competitors.
• CEO Insights: Chen emphasized that AI’s ability to provide quick, spam-free answers aligns well with NerdWallet’s offerings. "AI, at its best, helps you find a great answer quickly without a bunch of effort or spam," he said.
• AI Agent Test: deBanked tested AI recommendations for small business loans, with both Grok-3 and ChatGPT-4o listing Fundera (acquired by NerdWallet in 2020) among top choices. Results may vary due to AI personalization.
• Search Ranking Impact: Chen acknowledged a decline in traditional search rankings, partly due to search engines prioritizing AI-generated answers.
• AI’s Growing Role: The earnings call transcript itself was AI-generated, underscoring the technology’s pervasive influence.

Last modified: May 7, 2025