The largest U.S. banks stepped up lending to dominate the government's small-business rescue program after playing an undersized role in its early days.
U.S. banks under $10 billion in assets made 60% of the loans in the first round of the Paycheck Protection Program; things go relatively smoothly in the U.K. as 110,000 small businesses apply for low-cost loans.
Small businesses that received loans from the Paycheck Protection Program pandemic still don’t know how much they may have to repay after the government missed a deadline to give specific guidance.
More companies will be eligible to apply for the four-year loans, including those with high debt loads; four-year loans will be offered to European banks with rates as low as minus 1% as the eurozone economy tanks.
The Main Street Lending Program, announced on April 9 as an option to help U.S. businesses weather the coronavirus outbreak, will be available to a wider array of companies than previously planned.
