According to a recent article that appeared on the American-Statesman website, University of Texas finance professor, Lewis Spellman, was said to have made a rather bold prediction over lunch last April when he noted that a lukewarm recovery had started nudging the U.S. economy upward, and most of the country’s banks had regained their balance following the crises that battered the industry in 2008.

The Statesman said despite the optimistic signs, Spellman was suggesting traditional bank lending was on the front end of what would become a slow, inexorable decline. Non-bank lenders would secure an ever-increasing share of the market for business and consumer loans.

When asked last week if his views had softened – if the rise of alternative lenders had slowed – Spellman held firm. “No,” he said, “it’s ramping up.”

To read the entire American-Statesman story, click here.