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        <title><![CDATA[Hundreds of public companies keep coronavirus loans from federal program]]></title>
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        <lastBuildDate>Mon, 25 May 2020 15:13:11 +0000</lastBuildDate>
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            <media:title type="html">Hundreds of public companies keep coronavirus loans from federal program</media:title>
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        <content:encoded><![CDATA[<p>Hundreds of publicly traded companies appear to be keeping government-backed loans meant to help small businesses weather the coronavirus crisis.</p><p>Only 68 of the 424 public firms that disclosed receiving $1.3 billion in loans from the federal Paycheck Protection Program had pledged to return them as of early Monday morning, according to regulatory filings compiled by <strong>data-analysis company FactSquared.</strong></p><p>That suggests 356, or roughly 84 percent, of those companies are holding onto the money amid the Trump administration&#8217;s <strong>pledge to crack down on abuse</strong> of the $659 billion program. Officials gave firms until May 18 to repay loans without facing further scrutiny.</p><p>Some 76 of those companies had enough cash and cash equivalents on hand to cover operating expenses until at least June, <strong>a Reuters analysis found.</strong></p><p><span >The firms keeping loans include upscale restaurant operator ONE Group Hospitality, which got $18.3 million from the pool of money meant to help small businesses cover payroll and overhead costs, FactSquared&#8217;s database showed. </span>There&#8217;s also Hallador Energy, a coal firm that got $10 million, and high-end hotel company Sotherly Hotels, which got nearly $10.4 million, according to the data.</p><p>Those are likely to get a closer look from the US Small Business Administration, which has pledged to review all Paycheck Protection Program loans larger than $2 million to ensure the rules were followed. The feds will try to get outstanding loan balances back from companies that they find didn&#8217;t actually need the funds to keep operating amid the pandemic, according to officials.</p><p>But the SBA won&#8217;t scrutinize firms that borrowed less than $2 million because they&#8217;re &#8220;generally less likely to have had access to adequate sources of liquidity in the current economic environment,&#8221; officials have said.</p><p>That indicates many public companies like <strong>Wilhelmina International</strong> — the big-name modeling agency that snagged just under $2 million in loans — will effectively get a free pass.</p><p>The Paycheck Protection Program drew fire for initially helping big companies such as <strong>Shake Shack and Ruth&#8217;s Chris Steak House</strong> while struggling small businesses were left out in the cold after its initial $349 billion budget ran out in two weeks. Those two restaurant chains have since returned their loans.</p><p>But the second round of $310 billion has lasted longer, with $135.7 billion still available as of May 19, according to the SBA. The average loan size as of last week was $118,000, though the majority of those distributed have been for $50,000 or less, the agency said.</p>]]></content:encoded>
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