Small business lending

At least two items on the industry's Paycheck Protection Program wish list were delivered: provisions allowing many existing borrowers to obtain new funding and streamlined forgiveness for loans of $150,000 or less.

Fifth Third is partnering with Provide and Panacea Financial works with Sonabank in Virginia to meet the specialized needs of medical professionals who own their own practices.

A program that lets firms bundle Small Business Administration loans is on hold while Congress spars over a new budget. The impasse is causing headaches for banks that rely on loan sales for fee income.

Lawmakers need to create a coronavirus relief program targeting owners of smaller businesses facing more hardship than larger competitors that received much of the aid from the Paycheck Protection Program.

Montecito Bank in California began streamlining originations after a natural disaster decimated its community in 2018. The move paid off when the COVID-19 crisis hit and the bank had to quickly step up efforts to help clients.

New analysis from S&P shows credit unions near $1 billion of assets and above continuing to dominate the industry's performance in the Paycheck Protection Program as some CUs dedicate a substantial portion of their portfolios to the effort.

Webster Bank and Customers Bank are among the lenders that have turned to alternative data sources and automated loan reviews to assess business customers' ability to weather the coronavirus pandemic.

Though there is some optimism about an economic recovery, two-thirds of respondents said they expect revenue to be flat of down next year and just 13% plan to be in hiring mode.

People with scores below 500 are often in communities that suffer the most from economic hardship and violence. Banks and regulators can do more to qualify them for financing, ultimately creating healthier local economies.

Lenders are worried that the Small Business Administration could use borrower responses to deny forgiveness for many Paycheck Protection Program loans that exceed $2 million.