The new round of PPP loans has not yet started

The Federal Small Business Administration (SBA) is currently working on updating the guidelines for the new round of the Payroll Protection Program (PPP), so it’s not available yet. they receive loan applications.

This new round, for which $ 324,000 million was allocated to all states and territories in the United States, was approved in late December as part of the new economic stimulus package to deal with the COVID-19 pandemic.

“Currently, the SBA, in consultation with the Ministry of Finance, is working diligently to identify changes to the forms and processes of the program rules, as set out in the legislative text, and to properly update the guidelines and systems for PPPs lenders and lenders, ”the SBA said in written statements yesterday.

“The SBA and the Treasury are committed to ensuring that the next round of PPP is launched as soon as possible to provide essential economic relief to US small businesses,” the entity added.

Banco Popular, for its part, reported through its communications officer Juan Cintrón that the institution has not yet accepted applications for PPP loans under this new roundIt is waiting for the SBA to issue the new manuals and instructions for working with the program.

Oriental Bank has also provided written notice that “once the SBA announces the requirements for applying for the PPP, we will include them in the online application to receive them.”

The PPP provides loans intended to provide a direct incentive to small businesses to keep their employees on the payroll. Loans are applied for from private financial institutions listed as participants in the program. The SBA will abolish loans if all employee retention criteria are met and the money is used for eligible expenses.

Last year there were two rounds of the PPP. Under this program, Popular was approved for more than 29,000 small and medium business loans for a total value of more than $ 1.4 billion. These include $ 240 million for customers in the continental United States, $ 27 million for customers in the U.S. Virgin Islands, and $ 1.2 billion paid out in Puerto Rico. Popular originated 63% of the PPP loans in Puerto Rico.

Oriental said it has completed 4,042 PPS loan applications, for a total of $ 164 million. “We were the first to run the process digitally, without our clients having to visit our offices,” said Carlos Comas, Vice President and Director of Business Banking at Oriental. “We are just as ready in this round to provide the service that customers need.”

In 2020, more than 4.9 million PPP loans were made to corporations and nonprofits in the United States as an mitigating agent for the economic impact of the coronavirus.

Extension to EIDL

On the other hand, the SBA recently announced that the deadline for applying for the Economic Damage Disaster Loan (EIDL) program for disaster reporting for the COVID-19 pandemic will be extended to December 31, 2021.

To date, the SBA has approved $ 197 billion in low-interest loans that provide working capital funds to small businesses, nonprofits and agricultural businesses.

The loans are offered on very affordable terms, with an interest rate of 3.75% for small businesses and an interest rate of 2.75% for non-profit organizations, with a term of 30 years and an automatic deferral of one year. before monthly payments begin, the SBA reported.