Banks are pushing more business loans. Some business owners aren’t sure they want them.

Apr 27, 2022
In the words of one business owner: "Why would I want to go into any type of expansion?"
Though commercial lending is starting to pick back up, some small businesses still have cash on hand from government relief programs.
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PPP loan deadline extension would help banks process more applications

Mar 29, 2021
The latest loans have moved more slowly than the previous round, due in part to additional compliance checks to prevent fraud.
Larger companies initially took advantage of the Paycheck Protection Program, which was intended to offer forgivable loans to smaller businesses.
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New PPP plan aims to level playing field for smallest businesses

Feb 24, 2021
Smaller businesses owned by women and people of color often lack the banking relationships that larger companies have.
President Biden announced changes Monday to the Paycheck Protection Program aimed at helping smaller businesses owned by women and people of color to qualify for federal loans due to the economic impact that has been caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
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What small business owners might expect from Biden

Dec 7, 2020
Biden has pledged to provide additional resources for small businesses. Business owners say the type of aid matters.
Biden has called for flexible grants to businesses that have lost substantial revenue. He also wants to refocus the Paycheck Protection Program on businesses with fewer than 50 employees, instead of the current 500.
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The Fed wants to lend money to more small businesses, but many aren't interested

Nov 2, 2020
The central bank dropped the minimum loan amount under its Main Street Lending Program to $100,000. But not many businesses feel confident taking out loans they'll have to repay in five years.
A bartender prepares to open his bar in Ocean City, Maryland, amid the pandemic, May 29, 2020.
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Bankers want businesses to know "there’s still money" for PPP loans

Jun 3, 2020
Laurie Stewart, CEO of Seattle-based Sound Community Bank, says the bank has made more than 700 loans through the program.
Laurie Stewart, CEO of Seattle-based Sound Community Bank, says her bank has funded PPP loans as small as $900.
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SBA temporarily shuts out big banks and businesses from Paycheck Protection Program

For eight hours, only smaller banks were able to process applications.
How can regulators make sure small businesses are the ones getting this money?
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For public good, not for profit.

Upper Midwest, Great Plains states have fared best in SBA emergency loan program

Apr 23, 2020
As Congress weighs a new round of funding, data reveal that the upper Midwest and Great Plains regions benefited the most from the first round of PPP funding.
With the coronavirus closing many businesses, the Paycheck Protection Program saved  millions of jobs that would have been lost, according to MIT research.
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A small gelato business confronts big questions

Apr 22, 2020
The owner of two Los Angeles stores shares her fears and hopes about surviving the coronavirus pandemic.
Courtesy of Uli Nasibova

The small business loans program is basically out of cash. What's next?

There's concern that the hardest hit businesses aren't getting enough help.
There's bipartisan agreement over the fact that there should be more money available, but members of Congress are at odds on how to get it done.
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