Banks Gave Richest Clients 'Concierge Treatment' for Pandemic Aid
Some businesses seeking coronavirus loans got to avoid flaky online portals or backed-up queues. Many other small businesses couldnt get their loan requests submitted before the money dried up.
The federal governments $349 billion aid program for small businesses devastated by the coronavirus pandemic was advertised as first-come, first-served. As many business owners found out, it was anything but.
Thats because some of the nations biggest banks, including JPMorgan Chase, Citibank and U.S. Bank, prioritized the applications of their wealthiest clients before turning to other loan seekers, according to half a dozen bank employees and financial industry executives who spoke on the condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to discuss the banks operations.
Customers of Citis private bank, where the minimum account size is $25 million, didnt have to use an online portal to apply for a loan; they could simply submit paperwork to their banker, who would put in an application on their behalf. At Chase, the nations largest bank, nearly all private and commercial banking clients who applied for a small-business loan got one, whereas only one out of every 15 retail banking customers who sought loans was successful. Some banks provided highly personalized, so-called concierge service to their richest clients by enlisting representatives to walk them through every step and submit their paperwork.
Customers of Citis private bank, where the minimum account size is $25 million, didnt have to use an online portal to apply for a loan; they could simply submit paperwork to their banker, who would put in an application on their behalf. At Chase, the nations largest bank, nearly all private and commercial banking clients who applied for a small-business loan got one, whereas only one out of every 15 retail banking customers who sought loans was successful. Some banks provided highly personalized, so-called concierge service to their richest clients by enlisting representatives to walk them through every step and submit their paperwork.
https://www.nytimes.com/2020/04/22/business/sba-loans-ppp-coronavirus.html