SBA awards go to 1.4 million small businesses
By Terry Troy
Last week, the U.S. Small Business Administration hit a major milestone of approving $103 billion Paycheck Protection Program funds to more than 1.4 Million small businesses.
In this round of loans, the PPP program reached out to more smaller businesses with 82% of all loans going to businesses requesting less than $100,000. More businesses in rural communities took advantage of the program with 28% of loans going to businesses in those locales. This round of PPP loans also showed an increase in partnerships with Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and Minority Depository Institutions (MDIs) who are trusted agents in extending economic relief to minority communities and underserved populations
The SBA is also following through on its commitment to take additional steps towards improving the speed to resolve data mismatches and eligibility concerns so that small businesses have as much time as possible to access much needed PPP funds, while maintaining the integrity of the program. The changes to the program will: Enable lenders to directly certify eligibility of borrowers for First Draw and Second Draw loan applications with validation errors to ensure businesses who need funds and are eligible receive them as quickly as possible; allow lenders to upload supporting documentation of borrowers with validation errors during the forgiveness process, and create additional communication channels with lenders to assure we are constantly improving equity, speed, and integrity of the program, including an immediate national lender call to brief them on the Platform’s added capabilities.
“We are pleased that the Paycheck Protection Program is targeting the smallest of small businesses and providing economic relief at a crucial time in American history,” said Michael Roth, SBA senior advisor to the administrator. “The SBA has achieved another major milestone to provide critical recovery capital to America’s small businesses by approving 1.3 million PPP loans totaling $104 billion in the current round. While we are excited that we are doing a better job of reaching the hardest hit industries and communities, we are committed to taking additional steps to ensure that there is equitable access for underserved businesses and that we are leading with empathy to support small businesses in a difficult spot.”
The video offers the most recent updates on EIDL Grant Timing and Eligibility.