WASHINGTON — The Treasury Department said Thursday that it will begin selling pools of securities backed by small business loans as part of a continuing effort to wind down the Troubled Asset Relief Program.
Treasury invested in 31 Small Business Administration 7(a) securities — backed by the guaranteed portion of SBA loans — through Tarp's Consumer and Business Lending Initiative. The purchases injected liquidity into the market and helped restart the flow of credit, enabling assemblers of securities pools to purchase additional small business loans from loan originators, according to a press release.
The securities were worth approximately $368 million, and were comprised of 1,001 loans from 17 different industries, including retail, food services, manufacturing, health care, educational services, and others.
Treasury plans to dispose of the portfolio over time through multiple sales, the timing and pace of which will be subject to market conditions. EARNEST Partners, which has acted as Treasury's financial agent for the portfolio, will execute the sales, Treasury said.
