Reston, VA (Business Wire) ⎯ Congress recently passed legislation in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. Within the legislation, the Small Business Administration (SBA) was allotted billions of dollars in funding to help mitigate the economic impact of the outbreak. The legislation — which includes the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) — provides economic relief for small to mid-size businesses.

The PPP features a loan forgiveness provision that motivates businesses to retain their employees, thus helping to minimize unemployment rates due to the outbreak. As a certified SBA lender, John Marshall Bank (JMB) was able to help businesses in VA, MD and DC process applications for this lending program.

In anticipation of the April 3rd launch of the program, the Bank deployed preliminary measures needed to prepare for the administration of the loans. This included comprehensive and early communication with business customers before the Paycheck Protection Program application was live and the development of an integrated online loan application portal designed for this program. Due to the pre-planning efforts, the Bank was able to process and satisfy virtually every application submitted in accordance with the guidelines provided. The Bank received an overwhelming response from both existing and new customers. At this time, the Bank has suspended accepting applications in order to prioritize servicing our impacted customers.

Through the diligent and collaborative effort of numerous staff members, John Marshall Bank will have promptly processed and submitted 610 Paycheck Protection Program loan applications to the SBA within a very short period. The average loan amount per business client is approximately $244,000 — 80% of the loans are equal to or less than $350,000. In total, the Bank will process $150 million in loans for hundreds of VA, MD and DC businesses that employ an average of 24 people per business or collectively over 15,000 employees throughout the region.

With banks being designated an essential service by the Department of Homeland Security, John Marshall Bank has been operating under normal business hours with nearly 80% of the Bank’s employees working fully remote or rotating shifts within their department. Employees are equipped with the latest in remote technology including conferencing tools and cloud-based applications. For employees that are working within the corporate office or local branches, the Bank continues to apply best practices according to federally mandated guidelines and public health recommendations. This includes social distancing and implementation of hygiene protocols.

“Our staff is working diligently to provide the resources, lending solutions and banking services needed to support our customers during this unprecedented time,” states Chief Lending Officer, Andrew J. Peden. “We’re committed to standing together in the fight against the outbreak and contributing to the rebound of both the local and national economy. In the meantime, our team continues to practice recommended precautionary measures in order to limit the spread of the virus.”