L.A. County, Goldman Sachs Open Loan Portal

The County of Los Angeles has launched an online portal in partnership with Goldman Sachs where small businesses affected by COVID-19 can apply for forgivable SBA loans under the federal Paycheck Protection Program, part of the CARES Act. Goldman Sachs’ philanthropy and business education initiative “10,000 Small Businesses” put $15 million into the loan program. Also involved is the nonprofit Community Reinvestment Fund USA, the largest non-bank SBA 7(a) lender in the country and Goldman Sachs’ national community development financial institution partner. Applicants first submit an inquiry to Community Reinvestment Fund that includes relevant information about the business. CRF then processes each application and follows up with businesses to procure the necessary documents. The portal went live Wednesday at 1 p.m. and is accessible on the CRF website. It is designed for microenterprises, nonprofits and other eligible businesses that have been unable to apply for a Paycheck Protection Program loan through their bank or other financial institution. The new loan channel is part of L.A. County’s COVID-19 Small Business Assistance Program, a joint venture with private banks to establish a fund to help small businesses and nonprofits. The County seeded the relief fund with an initial $12 million. In addition to Goldman Sachs’ $15 million, private sector contributions include $1 million from the Wells Fargo Foundation, $100,000 from Citi and $25,000 from the Union Bank Foundation.