SBA OK’s $16.8M in PPP loans in Puerto Rico/USVI 2 weeks into 2nd round
The U.S. Small Business Administration has approved 516 loans worth some $16.8 million through its Paycheck Protection Program to eligible operations in Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands in the first two weeks of the second round of funding.
The emergency financing program re-opened Jan. 11 and the numbers provided are through Jan. 24, Matt Coleman, regional communications director for the U.S. Small Business Administration, said.
A total of 400,580 PPP loans totaling more than $35 billion have been approved so far in this newest round of funding authorized by the Economic Aid Act signed into law on Dec 27, 2020. More than 65% of these loans have been for $50,000 or less and the average loan size is $87,000.
The SBA has launched two rounds of funding. In 2021 and 2020 combined, the agency has guaranteed 5.55 million loans totaling $557.8 billion granted by 5,448 lenders.
During this second round of funding, loans are available for eligible small businesses with 300 employees or less and that previously received a PPP loan.
“These borrowers will have to use or had used the full amount of their first loan only for authorized uses and demonstrate at least a 25% reduction in gross receipts between comparable quarters in 2019 and 2020. The maximum amount of a second PPP loan is $2 million,” the SBA said.
During this second round of funding so far, small businesses falling in the accommodation and food service industry are topping the list of PPP loans through the report date, with 19%, followed by construction (14%) and manufacturing (11%).
Puerto Rico’s businesses received nearly $1.8 billion in PPP funding during the first round in 2020, as this media outlet informado.
