BBVA USA recounts Paycheck Protection Program results to date, lends $3.3 billion

For context on the size of the bank's commitment to the PPP, the bank's total SBA 7(a) loan originations for the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2019 were 259 loans totaling nearly $270.7 million, an outcome that garnered the bank a no. 14 rank nationally in dollar volume for SBA loans originated. The bank consistently punches above its weight class for the SBA lending component of its small business portfolio, ranking in the top 15 nationally each year. In the case of PPP, the bank lent in less than 60 days what it might typically do over the course of ten years.

Dobers: "This program has by far outpaced any previous small business lending that we have done."

"This program has by far outpaced any previous small business lending that we have done," said BBVA USA Executive Director of Business Banking Elizabeth Dobers. "We were among the first banks to open our online portal to applicants because we truly felt this program was our call to do everything we could for the small businesses that make up the fabric of our communities, and it was a call we took to heart."

The PPP, a key small business relief component of the CARES Act, allows businesses with fewer than 500 employees to borrow money from government guaranteed lenders to fund up to 2.5 times their monthly payroll and other employee expenses, including health insurance and retirement coverage. If all employees are retained throughout the designated time period, businesses may be eligible to have their loan balances forgiven.

BBVA today reported that so far, through the second round of funding for the PPP, it has:

• Funded approximately $3.3 billion dollars in small business loans
• Processed, underwritten and approved more than 22,000 applications
• Impacted approximately 360,000 jobs in communities across the country
• Provided an average loan size of $149,000
• Supported diverse industries from medical providers to restaurants to manufacturing plants
• Provided loans to nearly 3,100 borrowers who did not previously have a relationship with BBVA USA
• Began funding loans on April 6, just 3 days after the program opened for applications

To support small businesses through the PPP, the bank developed a new online application in just three days - something that in normal circumstances would typically require up to a year of planning, development and deployment. The bank also added hundreds of people from across all lines of business to process, underwrite and submit applications, including a volunteer force and Retail team members who came in during their "off" hours to process applications and connect with applicants.

"We've heard from clients across our footprint whose livelihoods have been saved by this funding," Dobers said. "Many of them have told us how our team members were contacting them in the wee hours of the morning, based on their email timestamps. Without fail, all of them have told us how grateful they are that our team members worked around the clock to get them funding."

BBVA USA has been recognized as one of the leading small business lenders by the SBA and ranked 14th nationally in terms of dollar volume of SBA loans originated, based on financial data for fiscal year 2019.

Dobers: "Our efforts with PPP were herculean, comparatively, with the bank lending in less than 60 days what it might typically do over the course of ten years."

"BBVA USA has always been incredibly strong with its SBA lending, ranking consistently in the top 15 for dollar volume and punching way above its weight class," she said. "Our efforts with PPP were herculean, comparatively, with the bank lending in less than 60 days what it might typically do over the course of ten years."

"I just can't tell you how proud we are as a bank to have served our communities in this way," Dobers said. "I speak for everybody that was part of this project when I say that we were fully aware of how many livelihoods were on the line, but having the opportunity to be a part of saving an estimated 360,000 jobs is a pinnacle moment in our careers."

BBVA USA is continuing to take applications from customers and non-customers. Click here for more information on how to apply for a PPP loan through BBVA USA.

For additional information regarding BBVA's COVID-19 response, visit the bank's COVID-19 landing page, here.