Bank Lending Is Making a Comeback

"Why aren't banks lending money?" Some version of this question has been asked countless times since the aftermath of the 2008 financial crisis. Small businesses asked it. Commentators asked it. Economists asked it. President Barack Obama asked it. The frustration was understandable. Whether true or not, the public perception was that banks took extraordinary bailout funds, and then told borrowers to get lost. Not until that ends, some said, could the economy recover.