PROVIDENCE – Citizens Bank has helped roughly 3,100 Rhode Island small businesses secure a total of $321 million in funding through the U.S. Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program as of May 7, according to Keith Kelly, Citizens Bank Rhode Island president.
Through the payroll relief program, the bank has helped local recipients retain 34,000 jobs, with a focus on small companies and an average loan size of $104,000. Kelly said 80% of loans went to companies with 10 or fewer workers.
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Nationally, the bank has funded $4.8 billion across 45,000 approved applicants, with another 11,000 applications in the queue. This compares with an average $5 million the bank typically funds per month under existing SBA loan programs.
Kelly emphasized the bank’s continued commitment to helping the business community through any and all federal relief programs; the bank has also been in active discussion with the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston over the rollout of a Main Street lending program.
Citizens previously announced a $5 million allocation to community pandemic relief, including direct grants to small businesses and donations to local charities.
No further funding has been set aside at this time, though Kelly did not rule out the possibility of future commitments as economic recovery began.
Citizens has also hired roughly 300 new employees to meet increasing demand for loans.
Nancy Lavin is a staff writer for PBN. Contact her at Lavin@PBN.com.
