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PAYCHECK PROTECTION
PROGRAM (PPP)
Guidance on Accessing Capital for Minority, Underserved, Veteran
and Women-Owned Business Concerns
The Small Business Administration (SBA) is dedicated to helping sustain our nation’s small businesses
and to supporting their tens of millions of employees. During these unprecedented times brought on
by the COVID-19 global pandemic, SBA has worked tirelessly and closely with Congress, with
borrowers, and with lenders of all sizes – including regional and community banks, Farm Credit System
lenders, credit unions, fintechs, community development financial institutions (CDFIs), and minority
depository institutions (MDIs) – to maximize access to the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP or
Program). SBA is continuing to encourage and support these efforts that have benefitted the smallest
businesses and underserved communities.
The first round of the PPP supported the employment of 51 million American workers and over 80
percent of small business payroll across all 50 states and territories. More than 87 percent of loans
have been for $150,000 or less, with an average loan size of $101,000 – demonstrating the accessibility
of the PPP to even the smallest businesses. PPP loans have been broadly distributed across diverse
areas of the economy, with 27 percent of the funds going to low- and moderate-income communities,
which is in proportion to their percentage of the population. More than 70 percent of PPP loans have
been made to businesses with fewer than 10 employees. Over $80 billion, or 15 percent of the total
PPP loan amount, has been disbursed to small businesses in rural communities. Small businesses in
Historically Underutilized Business Zones (HUBZones) have received more than $130 billion in PPP
funding, accounting for more than 25 percent of all PPP loan dollars. In addition, more than 430 CDFIs
and MDIs across the country have made over 221,000 PPP loans for more than $16.4 billion.
Building on the success of the first round of PPP, SBA is continuing to address potential barriers to
access to capital for minority, underserved, veteran, and women-owned business concerns.
In the Economic Aid to Hard-Hit Small Businesses, Non-Profits, and Venues Act (Economic Aid Act), our
partners in Congress have set aside funds for new and smaller borrowers, for borrowers in low- and
moderate-income communities, and for community and smaller lenders. These set asides include:
• $15 billion across first and second draw PPP loans for lending by community financial
institutions;
• $15 billion across first and second draw PPP loans for lending by Insured Depository
Institutions, Credit Unions, and Farm Credit System Institutions with consolidated assets of
less than $10 billion;
• $35 billion for new first draw PPP borrowers; and
• $15 billion and $25 billion for first draw and second draw PPP loans, respectively, for borrowers
with a maximum of 10 employees or for loans less than $250,000 to borrowers in low-or
moderate-income neighborhoods. SBA has determined that at least 25 percent of each of those
set-asides will go to each one of the groups: loans to borrowers with a maximum of 10