Capital One Says Small Businesses Are Cautious, Confident and Ready to Grow

Watch more: Need to Know With Capital One’s Shena Ashley

For America’s small business owners, optimism and caution are no longer opposing forces. They are operating simultaneously.

Even as inflation pressures persist, borrowing costs remain elevated and economic uncertainty continues to shape decision-making, a growing number of entrepreneurs are expressing confidence about their prospects. The apparent contradiction reflects a deeper shift underway in how small businesses think about growth, resilience and the role technology plays in navigating volatility.

“This is probably an optimistic group to begin with,” Shena Ashley, president, Capital One Insights Center, told PYMNTS. “When you have vision and you are setting your own course to go out there and do something in the world, you probably have a little bit more of an optimistic lean.”

Ashley argued that optimism today is being reinforced by something more tangible than entrepreneurial instinct. Small business owners increasingly have access to digital tools, financial platforms and integrated systems that allow them to operate with greater visibility and control than previous generations of entrepreneurs.

That access is changing the growth equation.

Preparedness Fuels Confidence

For many entrepreneurs, confidence today is less about expecting stability and more about believing they can adapt to whatever comes next. After navigating pandemic shutdowns, supply chain disruptions, inflation spikes and labor shortages, resilience has become a core business capability.

“Small business owners right now have access to more tools and technology, and that’s a part of the story for what’s driving their optimism as well,” Ashley said. “They’re trying to create pathways of opportunity.”

According to research from Capital One’s Insight Center, more than 75% of surveyed small business owners are confident in their ability to grow, while 69% say they are already positioned for expansion. Ashley said many entrepreneurs view growth as part of a larger ambition.

“Many small business owners are looking at their balance sheet as a way to further a vision that they had, that they could create an opportunity that could be legacy building for them, their family, even their coworkers and folks that they have hired,” Ashley said. “This aspiration for growth, the ability to scale, is what’s driving some of that optimism.”

Capital as a Growth Engine

Access to capital remains central to turning that optimism into expansion. The research found that 66% of surveyed owners view credit as a key growth driver, enabling businesses to manage cash flow, invest in equipment, hire employees and respond to opportunities.

“Access to credit and access to capital is a key operational lifeline for businesses,” Ashley said.

At the same time, business owners increasingly want financing embedded within broader financial systems that help them understand when and how to deploy capital. Ashley emphasized that entrepreneurs are looking for financing tools that provide real-time visibility and connect seamlessly with their financial operations.

“It’s not just that it’s there, it’s accessible, it’s ready when they need it,” she said. “They know how to be able to call on that resource.”

The study also found that 84% of surveyed small business owners actively maximize credit card rewards programs, using benefits to offset operating expenses, invest in equipment and support employee incentives. The finding underscores how entrepreneurs are treating every available financial resource as part of a broader growth strategy.

The Cost of Operational Friction

While capital remains critical, time may be equally valuable. Many small businesses still operate across fragmented financial systems that require significant manual effort, creating what Ashley described as “back-office friction.”

“What we saw in the study is that a lot of small business owners are operating in a very fragmented financial system today that is becoming a drain on their time and their ability to grow,” she said.

Nearly three-quarters of respondents said operational challenges make it difficult to manage and predict cash flow effectively. As a result, integrated platforms that combine accounting, bookkeeping, payments, credit and forecasting are becoming important.

“Having the kind of integrated tools that allow you to have visibility into your cash flow was an important resource that small business owners cited as a particular lever for their growth,” Ashley said.

According to the survey, 79% of small businesses now use integrated accounting and bookkeeping platforms, while 51% say those tools free up time that can be redirected toward customers and growth initiatives.

“They’re able to deploy their capital with a little bit more security and the knowledge that their financial operations can support their growth and their goals moving ahead,” she said.

Ashley sees that trend pointing toward a future in which resilience is increasingly tied to the integration of capital, technology and operational insight.

“To me, that’s the leading edge. That’s the future,” Ashley said. “That’s where we need to meet small business owners with the kind of financial tools that really allow them to have visibility into their operations and planning.”

Watch the full interview with Capital One Insights Center President Shena Ashley to hear more about:

Why small business optimism is rooted in preparedness, not certainty. Ashley discusses how entrepreneurs are leveraging technology, financial tools and operational visibility to navigate economic uncertainty while pursuing growth.

How access to capital is evolving beyond traditional financing. The discussion examines why business owners increasingly view credit, rewards programs and real-time financial insights as essential components of their growth strategy.

How integrated financial platforms are reducing back-office friction. Ashley outlines how connected accounting, bookkeeping and cash-flow tools are helping businesses save time, improve forecasting and scale with greater confidence.