SBA-Backed Loans to Small Businesses Top $29.3 Billion, Thanks to Recovery Act Funding

The U.S. Small Business Association [SBA] received $730 million in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act [ARRA] to help unlock the small business-lending market and get capital flowing again to America’s small businesses. Due to the success of these programs, the SBA received an additional $305 million to continue several ARRA programs.

SBA Recovery Efforts -- Impact to Date
* SBA Has Supported More Than $29.3 Billion in Recovery Loans to Small Businesses: As of July 2, SBA had supported $29.3 billion-plus in small-business lending, with the approval of $22 billion in Recovery loans since Feb. 17. From Feb. 17, 2009, to July 2, 2010, weekly SBA loan-dollar volumes rose more than 90 percent in the 7[a] and 504 programs, compared to the weekly average before passage.

* More Lenders Making Loans: From Feb. 17, 2009, to June 25, 2010, more than 1,363 lenders who had not made a loan since at least 2007 made a 7[a] loan.

* Broad Support to Businesses: A significant share of Recovery loans have gone to rural [24 percent], minority-owned [21 percent], women-owned [18 percent], and veteran-owned [8 percent] businesses.

* Secondary Markets Uptick with 7[a] Loans: After months of reduced activity and lower premiums, the SBA 7[a] secondary market is picking up, and premiums are beginning to recover. Over the past 13 months, the average monthly loan volume settled from lenders to broker-dealers in the 7[a] secondary market has been $342 million, providing lenders with additional liquidity to increase lending.

* America's Recovery Capital [ARC] Loans Helping Small Businesses: As of July 2, SBA had approved 7,925 ARC loans -- totaling over $256.6 million by 1,268 lenders -- to help small businesses make it through this tough economy.

SBA Recovery Programs
To date, SBA has implemented programs for all of the $730 million in SBA Recovery Act funding, plus an additional $305 million provided in December, February, March, and April for the agency’s lending programs -- including:

* Eliminating and reducing fees for borrowers on 7[a] loans, and for borrowers and lenders on 504 loans;

* Raising to 90 percent the guarantee on 7[a] loans -- from 75 or 85 percent, depending on the size of loan;

* Doubling the surety bond guarantee from $2 million to $5 million, thus providing small businesses with another tool to help them compete for federal construction and service contracts;

* Assisting struggling small businesses with the new ARC loan program, which provides no-interest, deferred-repayment loans of up to $35,000 to viable businesses to help them make debt payments;

* Providing refinancing opportunities for certain eligible loans into SBA-backed 504 loans for expansion and job creation;

* Expanding access to investment capital for small businesses, by increasing funding levels for SBA-licensed Small Business Investment Companies [SBICs]; and

* Taking steps to ensure the stability of the secondary market for SBA loans.

The SBA has also implemented two new programs that complement the ARRA measures and increase access to capital for small businesses by:

* Expanding 7[a] loan eligibility to more than 70,000 small businesses through a temporary alternate size standard; and

* Offering inventory financing for eligible auto, RV, boat and other dealerships under the new Dealer Floor Plan Financing pilot program.

To learn more about how SBA and the Recovery Act are helping small businesses succeed throughout America, go to: http://bit.ly/SuccessStoriesSBA.

SOURCE: U.S. Small Business Administration
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