A commercial and industrial loan (C&I loan) is a loan to a business rather than a loan to an individual consumer. These short-term loans may have an interest rate based on the LIBOR rate or prime rate and are secured by collateral owned by the business requesting the loan. According to SMB Adviser, the main purpose of a C&I loan is to finance capital expenditures or provide working capital to the borrower. A C&I loan is generally a short-term (1-2 year) line of credit or term loan, secured by collateral and cash flow owned by the business requesting the loan.