Merchant

Queued-up loans. Extra bankers. Government tweaks to promote fairness. None of these precautionary measures has been enough for the second round of the Paycheck Protection Program to avoid the pitfalls of the first.

As banks accept new applications for the paycheck program, they are dogged by complaints that they prioritized wealthy borrowers. But lenders likely fast-tracked clients they knew best under difficult circumstances, observers say.

The Small Business Administration's systems froze up shortly after the latest Paycheck Protection Program was launched Monday morning.

Not everything is in decline. T&E approval processes need to be ready for spikes in invoices for streaming content, tele-meetings and remote technology rather than air travel and hotels, said AppZen's Uri Kogan.

When Plastiq pivoted its bill-payment services to target cash-strapped SMBs instead of consumers, the startup had no way of knowing how coronavirus would affect its growth.

The billionaire investor and entrepreneur sees problems with small businesses having to apply for loans to get coronavirus relief. He says a more efficient approach would be to let them run negative balances on their bank accounts.

Lenders are being urged to prepare applications for the latest version of the Paycheck Protection Program.

The Georgia bank could rely more on drive-through-only branches, trim office space and reassess staffing levels after the coronavirus crisis, according to Kessel Stelling.

PayPal is temporarily waiving fees for consumers using its app to accept government and payroll checks during the coronavirus pandemic.

The Tempe Small Business Emergency Loan Program will provide $1 million to help area companies weather the coronavirus.