The first day of an ambitious government bailout of small businesses shuttered by the coronavirus pandemic saw banks overloaded with loan applications.
Friday was the opening for applications to the $349 billion Paycheck Protection Act, part of last week’s $2 trillion coronavirus stimulus measures. The program allows small businesses to borrow up to $10 million to retain employees and keep their businesses running while strict sheltering requirements remain in place.
Jovita Carranza, administrator of the Small Business Administration, tweeted out the first day’s totals:
Those numbers came despite the fact that only four of the nation’s 10 largest lenders to small businesses were accepting applications, having received federal guidelines only hours before the opening, according to CBS.
Regions’ online portal for the program carried the message, “We’re sorry for the inconvenience. The online application is currently unavailable due to high volume. Please check back later to begin your application process.” BBVA also began accepting applications online Friday.
The program was created to get money in the hands of business owners quickly in order to blunt the damage done by weeks without revenue, trying to cover businesses’ costs and payroll until commerce resumes.
During a media call Friday, U.S. Chamber of Commerce Executive Vice President and Chief Policy Officer Neil Bradley, and Vice President of Small Business Policy Tom Sullivan, said a poll their organization conducted with Met Life in late March shows the good and bad of the coronavirus shutdown.
About one in four small businesses are two months or less from closing permanently, while one in 10 are less than one month away from permanently closing. However, most felt measures enumerated in the $2 billion stimulus plan approved by Congress last year could blunt the force of the coronavirus economic shutdown.
About half surveyed felt the economy would be “back to normal” within six to 12 months, and one in four plan to hire new employees.
“That’s not that far off where it was in the last quarter last year,” Bradley said.
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April 04, 2020 at 07:04PM
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Small businesses clamor for Paycheck Protection Program loans - AL.com
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