News Roundup for Small Business Owners: April 8, 2020

The latest news about relief efforts for small businesses, particularly via the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and Economic Injury Disaster Loans (EIDL).

• Update: Still. Very. Messy. (Yahoo Finance, Business Insider, Washington Post, Fortune and countless more)
• Yahoo Finance put together this list of PPP lenders — and their application requirements — as of Monday night. (Yahoo Finance)
• Most of us are frustrated with the lack of information from the SBA regarding loan disbursements, so entrepreneurs, let’s do what we do best: Do it ourselves! A group of small business owners launched a COVID Loan Tracker to see who is getting loans and for how much. From their first hundred respondents, the results are: 40.2% of applicants are LLCs, 50% applied through small banks, 91.8% applied for < $ 1 mi, and (wait for it) 0% have received PPP loans or EDL grants.
• Another day, more guidance for lenders from the Department of the Treasury. Pretty minor changes today; aside from what appears to be a couple wording clarifications, two new questions were added, one regarding whether a lender may use their own promissory note instead of using the SBA’s (they can), and a question about when the 8-week loan forgiveness period begins (the date after disbursement, and disbursement must come no later than 10 days after approval). (Treasury Dept.)
• The Federal Reserve lifted the asset cap they had previously placed on Wells Fargo, only for loans in the PPP and the forthcoming Main Street Lending Program (more on that later). While Wells Fargo will only allow applicants who were online banking customers prior to Feb. 15, this is a crucial addition because Wells Fargo is the largest small business lender in the U.S. and has 3 million small business clients. (Yahoo Finance)
• The Main Street Lending program is scheduled to launch this week. This program fills the hole left for medium-sized businesses (those with more than 500 employees) that aren’t corporations. (Politico)
• Congress and the White House are debating additional funding for the PPP. The administration wants a supplemental bill of $250 billion in addition to the PPP, and Pelosi has declared that the House won’t let that happen without additional help for hospitals, municipalities, and food assistance (total bill size of $500 billion). Pelosi and Schumer are also mandating that half of the $250 billion for PPP be allocated only to community banks. (Reuters, NPR)
• We’re beginning to get skeptical on the EIDL loan advances ourselves, as I’m sure you are. There is confirmation that loan advances are limited to $1,000 per employee up to a maximum of $10,000, as we first mentioned Monday. (Inc.)

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Monday, April 6 | Tuesday, April 7

Masterplans is a veteran-owned business that specializes in providing the highest-level business development consulting located in Portland, Oregon. For 17 years we have helped thousands of entrepreneurs launch new businesses and put their ideas in motion. Now, more than ever, we want to see these same businesses survive the largest economic disaster of our generation.