Lenders wrote risky loans and sold them without being directly affected by the borrowers inability to pay.

At the National Boat Show, 16 lenders have taken space, ready to write loans on new or used boats for as little as $3,000.

In addition, nearly 30 banks have failed or been taken over in the last few years, which means fewer banks are writing loans, further limiting the market.

There's not a lot of banks writing loans to buy a business these days.

Dealers also said that banks were more reluctant to write loans for customers than they were a year ago.

Some C.R.A. bank officers are window dressing, because they are not authorized to write loans.

Banks are generally not in the business of writing tiny loans, because they are as expensive to process - and far less profitable - than larger loans.

"Maritime is going to pick up business, because they're new, and they can write loans without regulators climbing up and down on them."

The exceptions - Freshstart and five other companies, all in New York - also write traditional loans but have found their niche with immigrants and medallions.

While building distressed debt, the European branch of the firm also writes loans for small companies that are unable to obtain financing.