Post by the Scribe on Jul 7, 2020 12:19:02 GMT
More proof that earlier stories were true. Actual small businesses were unable to navigate the loan platform in a fast enough time to utilize the funds before they were snatched up....by million dollar plus businesses which don't exactly meet the average definition of "small business". Gee.... wonder how THAT happened? Ask Mnuchin. Nothing but a huge cash grab while working families are going broke with elevated child care costs, a drastic rise in consumer goods prices and being deemed "essential" didn't help with child care. People can no longer afford to work and do not qualify for assistance because they are working class two income households. The economy is not in a good spot right now despite the stock market. It will get much worse before it gets truly better. What I find most concerning is these are the wealthy that don’t pay taxes and yet are taking from the working class tax payers. Hedge funds made more money then anytime in history and got the bailout.
Kanye West? The Girl Scouts? Hedge funds? All got PPP loans
finance.yahoo.com/news/kanye-west-girl-scouts-hedge-231438761.html
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8494965/U-S-Treasury-small-businesses-took-pandemic-aid-says-51-1-mln-jobs-supported.html
Associated Press
CHRISTOPHER RUGABER
Associated PressJuly 6, 2020
Virus Outbreak-Small Business Loans-New Mexico
FILE - Hot air balloons are inflated during the annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, N.M., on Saturday, Oct. 5, 2019. The Santa Fe Opera, Meow Wolf and the non-profit organization that puts on the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta are among the New Mexico businesses that received loans from the federal government as part of massive effort to support the economy amid the coronavirus outbreak. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan, file)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The government's small business lending program has benefited millions of companies, with the goal of minimizing the number of layoffs Americans have suffered in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. Yet the recipients include many you probably wouldn't have expected.
Kanye West's clothing line. The sculptor Jeff Koons. Law firms and high-dollar hedge funds. The Girl Scouts. Political groups on both the left and right.
All told, the Treasury Department's Paycheck Protection Program authorized $520 billion for nearly 5 million mostly small businesses and nonprofits. On Monday, the government released the names and some other details of recipients who were approved for $150,000 or more.
That amounted to fewer than 15% of all borrowers. The Associated Press and other news organizations are suing the government to obtain the names of the remaining recipients.
Economists generally credit the program with preventing the job market meltdown this spring from becoming even worse. More than 22 million jobs were lost in March and April. But roughly one-third of them were regained in May and June — a faster rebound than many analysts had expected.
The government acted quickly in early April, with Treasury lending the first $349 billion in just two weeks. The program got off to a rocky start, one marked by confusion and difficulty for many companies that sought loans.
“The process was messy, and they couldn’t target it as much,” Diane Swonk, chief economist at accounting firm Grant Thornton, said of Treasury.
Here are seven unlikely recipients of the PPP loans:
JEFF KOONS
Koons, a modernist sculptor, is known best for his work with large, metallic balloon-like animals. His “Rabbit” sculpture fetched $91 million at auction last year.
Koons' studio was approved for $1 million to $2 million, the government's data shows. (The data shows only ranges for the amounts of approved loans.) His studio said it employed 53 people before the pandemic. The PPP loans can be forgiven if employers use most of the money to keep their workers on the payroll.
WALL STREET AND PRIVATE EQUITY
Nearly 600 asset management companies and private equity firms were approved for money from the PPP, according to government data.
Financial firms were generally not badly hurt by the coronavirus pandemic. Their employees were largely able to keep working, and they weren't among the industries that had to be shut down by government orders. In addition, of course, investment managers and private equity employees tend to be exceedingly well-paid occupations.
According to the data, those 583 companies reported supporting roughly 14,800 jobs collectively with the money from the program. That’s an average of 25 employees per company.
One other notable financial company that borrowed from the program: Rosenblatt Securities, which commands one of the largest physical presences on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Rosenblatt borrowed between $1 million and $2 million.
KANYE WEST'S CLOTHING LINE:
Kanye West’s clothing-and-sneaker brand Yeezy received a loan of between $2 million and $5 million, according to the data released by Treasury. The company employed 106 people in mid-February before the pandemic struck.
Yeezy, best known for its $250 sneakers, just announced a major deal with Gap that will have the rap superstar designing hoodies and T-shirts to be sold in the chain’s 1,100 stores around the world. (A representative for Yeezy didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.)
Last weekend, West, a notable fan of President Donald Trump, tweeted that he was running for president.
Some other well-known fashion and retail names whose businesses were pummeled by store shutdowns were also approved for loans. The list included high-end designers Oscar de la Renta and Vera Wang and suit maker Hickey Freeman. All their loans were in the $2-million-to-$5 million range.
POLITICAL GROUPS
The Americans for Tax Reform Foundation, the nonprofit arm of the anti-tax lobbying group Americans for Tax Reform, was approved for a loan of up to $350,000. ATR, led by the antitax activist Grover Norquist, who has long supported a smaller federal government, said it didn't oppose the PPP. It described the program “as compensation for a government taking during the shutdown."
The Center for Law and Social Policy, a research and advocacy group focused on policies supporting low-income Americans, was authorized for a loan of up to $1 million, according to government data.
THE GIRL SCOUTS
More than 30 Girl Scout chapters across the country received PPP loans, the Treasury said. The Girl Scouts of Montana and Wyoming were approved for between $350,000 and $1 million.
JIM JUSTICE, BILLIONAIRE GOVERNOR
West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice’s family companies received at least $6.3 million from the program.
Justice, a Republican, is considered to be West Virginia’s richest person through his ownership of dozens of coal and agricultural businesses, many of which have been sued for unpaid debts. At least six Justice family businesses were approved for loans, including The Greenbrier Sporting Club, an exclusive club attached to a lavish resort that Justice owns called The Greenbrier.
Justice, a billionaire, acknowledged last week that his private companies received money from the program but said he didn't know the dollar amounts. A representative for the governor’s family companies didn't immediately return emails seeking comment.
RESTAURANT CHAINS
TGI Fridays and P.F. Chang’s China Bistro were among the major restaurant chains that were approved for loans.
Dallas-based TGI Fridays, which has around 500 restaurants nationwide, obtained between $5 million and $10 million in loans from the program. In 2014, TGI Fridays was bought by the the New York private equity firm TriArtisan Capital Advisors. That firm also owns P.F. Chang’s China Bistro, which was also approved for a loan.
Though the PPP program was designed to help small businesses, big hotel and restaurant chains were also allowed to apply. A message seeking comment was left with TGI Fridays.
P.F. Chang’s China Bistro says a PPP loan helped it keep 12,000 workers employed and transition its restaurants to carry-out-only during the coronavirus pandemic. Scottsdale, Arizona-based P.F. Chang’s, which has more than 210 restaurants around the country, was approved for between $5 million and $10 million from the PPP program, according to the government data.
The Trump Administration's coronavirus bailout program handed out up to $5 million to prop up Kanye West's production company while also pushing out funds to the law firm of Donald Trump's longtime personal lawyer, the Treasury revealed Monday.
The loans were part of a rush to inject billions into the economy as the coronavirus pandemic hit, with fears of mass layoffs hobbling the national economy for years.
With the economy faltering and coronavirus cases on the rise, the Small Business Administration provided the loans to aid small and medium-sized companies, ranging from financial firms to restaurants, bars and lounges.
Following mounting pressure to disclose specifically which businesses received loans through the Payment Protection Program (PPP) - established by President Trump's CARES Act - the government released records on Monday listing every recipient.
West's production and clothing company Yeezy, got a loan between $2 million and $5 million, the records show. As with other loans, it was meant to prevent layoffs, under terms that can allow the loans to be forgiven in the future.
www.bozsh.com/News/Kanye-West-and-Donald-Trumps-law-firm-among-700,000-firms-getting-PPP.html
The loans were part of a rush to inject billions into the economy as the coronavirus pandemic hit, with fears of mass layoffs hobbling the national economy for years.
With the economy faltering and coronavirus cases on the rise, the Small Business Administration provided the loans to aid small and medium-sized companies, ranging from financial firms to restaurants, bars and lounges.
Following mounting pressure to disclose specifically which businesses received loans through the Payment Protection Program (PPP) - established by President Trump's CARES Act - the government released records on Monday listing every recipient.
West's production and clothing company Yeezy, got a loan between $2 million and $5 million, the records show. As with other loans, it was meant to prevent layoffs, under terms that can allow the loans to be forgiven in the future.
www.bozsh.com/News/Kanye-West-and-Donald-Trumps-law-firm-among-700,000-firms-getting-PPP.html
Kanye West? The Girl Scouts? Hedge funds? All got PPP loans
finance.yahoo.com/news/kanye-west-girl-scouts-hedge-231438761.html
www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8494965/U-S-Treasury-small-businesses-took-pandemic-aid-says-51-1-mln-jobs-supported.html
Associated Press
CHRISTOPHER RUGABER
Associated PressJuly 6, 2020
Virus Outbreak-Small Business Loans-New Mexico
FILE - Hot air balloons are inflated during the annual Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta in Albuquerque, N.M., on Saturday, Oct. 5, 2019. The Santa Fe Opera, Meow Wolf and the non-profit organization that puts on the Albuquerque International Balloon Fiesta are among the New Mexico businesses that received loans from the federal government as part of massive effort to support the economy amid the coronavirus outbreak. (AP Photo/Susan Montoya Bryan, file)
WASHINGTON (AP) — The government's small business lending program has benefited millions of companies, with the goal of minimizing the number of layoffs Americans have suffered in the face of the coronavirus pandemic. Yet the recipients include many you probably wouldn't have expected.
Kanye West's clothing line. The sculptor Jeff Koons. Law firms and high-dollar hedge funds. The Girl Scouts. Political groups on both the left and right.
All told, the Treasury Department's Paycheck Protection Program authorized $520 billion for nearly 5 million mostly small businesses and nonprofits. On Monday, the government released the names and some other details of recipients who were approved for $150,000 or more.
That amounted to fewer than 15% of all borrowers. The Associated Press and other news organizations are suing the government to obtain the names of the remaining recipients.
Economists generally credit the program with preventing the job market meltdown this spring from becoming even worse. More than 22 million jobs were lost in March and April. But roughly one-third of them were regained in May and June — a faster rebound than many analysts had expected.
The government acted quickly in early April, with Treasury lending the first $349 billion in just two weeks. The program got off to a rocky start, one marked by confusion and difficulty for many companies that sought loans.
“The process was messy, and they couldn’t target it as much,” Diane Swonk, chief economist at accounting firm Grant Thornton, said of Treasury.
Here are seven unlikely recipients of the PPP loans:
JEFF KOONS
Koons, a modernist sculptor, is known best for his work with large, metallic balloon-like animals. His “Rabbit” sculpture fetched $91 million at auction last year.
Koons' studio was approved for $1 million to $2 million, the government's data shows. (The data shows only ranges for the amounts of approved loans.) His studio said it employed 53 people before the pandemic. The PPP loans can be forgiven if employers use most of the money to keep their workers on the payroll.
WALL STREET AND PRIVATE EQUITY
Nearly 600 asset management companies and private equity firms were approved for money from the PPP, according to government data.
Financial firms were generally not badly hurt by the coronavirus pandemic. Their employees were largely able to keep working, and they weren't among the industries that had to be shut down by government orders. In addition, of course, investment managers and private equity employees tend to be exceedingly well-paid occupations.
According to the data, those 583 companies reported supporting roughly 14,800 jobs collectively with the money from the program. That’s an average of 25 employees per company.
One other notable financial company that borrowed from the program: Rosenblatt Securities, which commands one of the largest physical presences on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange. Rosenblatt borrowed between $1 million and $2 million.
KANYE WEST'S CLOTHING LINE:
Kanye West’s clothing-and-sneaker brand Yeezy received a loan of between $2 million and $5 million, according to the data released by Treasury. The company employed 106 people in mid-February before the pandemic struck.
Yeezy, best known for its $250 sneakers, just announced a major deal with Gap that will have the rap superstar designing hoodies and T-shirts to be sold in the chain’s 1,100 stores around the world. (A representative for Yeezy didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.)
Last weekend, West, a notable fan of President Donald Trump, tweeted that he was running for president.
Some other well-known fashion and retail names whose businesses were pummeled by store shutdowns were also approved for loans. The list included high-end designers Oscar de la Renta and Vera Wang and suit maker Hickey Freeman. All their loans were in the $2-million-to-$5 million range.
POLITICAL GROUPS
The Americans for Tax Reform Foundation, the nonprofit arm of the anti-tax lobbying group Americans for Tax Reform, was approved for a loan of up to $350,000. ATR, led by the antitax activist Grover Norquist, who has long supported a smaller federal government, said it didn't oppose the PPP. It described the program “as compensation for a government taking during the shutdown."
The Center for Law and Social Policy, a research and advocacy group focused on policies supporting low-income Americans, was authorized for a loan of up to $1 million, according to government data.
THE GIRL SCOUTS
More than 30 Girl Scout chapters across the country received PPP loans, the Treasury said. The Girl Scouts of Montana and Wyoming were approved for between $350,000 and $1 million.
JIM JUSTICE, BILLIONAIRE GOVERNOR
West Virginia Gov. Jim Justice’s family companies received at least $6.3 million from the program.
Justice, a Republican, is considered to be West Virginia’s richest person through his ownership of dozens of coal and agricultural businesses, many of which have been sued for unpaid debts. At least six Justice family businesses were approved for loans, including The Greenbrier Sporting Club, an exclusive club attached to a lavish resort that Justice owns called The Greenbrier.
Justice, a billionaire, acknowledged last week that his private companies received money from the program but said he didn't know the dollar amounts. A representative for the governor’s family companies didn't immediately return emails seeking comment.
RESTAURANT CHAINS
TGI Fridays and P.F. Chang’s China Bistro were among the major restaurant chains that were approved for loans.
Dallas-based TGI Fridays, which has around 500 restaurants nationwide, obtained between $5 million and $10 million in loans from the program. In 2014, TGI Fridays was bought by the the New York private equity firm TriArtisan Capital Advisors. That firm also owns P.F. Chang’s China Bistro, which was also approved for a loan.
Though the PPP program was designed to help small businesses, big hotel and restaurant chains were also allowed to apply. A message seeking comment was left with TGI Fridays.
P.F. Chang’s China Bistro says a PPP loan helped it keep 12,000 workers employed and transition its restaurants to carry-out-only during the coronavirus pandemic. Scottsdale, Arizona-based P.F. Chang’s, which has more than 210 restaurants around the country, was approved for between $5 million and $10 million from the PPP program, according to the government data.