According to a Bloomberg report, the largest U.S. banks are extending less credit while regional lenders are stepping in to fill the gap.

The reports cites data compiled by Bloomberg Lending which reveals total loans at the four largest U.S. Banks fell 4.9% in the first quarter from the same period in 2010. Conversely, the report reveals lending by the seventeen smallest of the twenty-four firms in the KBW Bank Index actually increased 9.8%.

Banks are trimming assets to satisfy stricter capital rules and regulatory demands to dispose of risky loans, while regional lenders are picking up customers said David Trone, an analyst at JMP Securities LLC in New York according to the report.