The U.S. Department of the Treasury said participants receiving capital through the Small Business Lending Fund continued to increase their small business lending in the second quarter, in total by $6.7 billion over the baseline and by $1.5 billion over the prior quarter.
Established as part of the Small Business Jobs Act that President Obama signed into law in 2010, the fund was set up to encourage community banks with less than $10 billion in assets to increase their lending to small businesses, help those companies expand their operations and create new jobs.
The Treasury Department said Tuesday it has invested more than $4.0 billion in 332 institutions through the SBLF. Collectively, these institutions operate in more than 3,000 locations across 48 states.
The fund’s latest figures come shortly after the first anniversary of the SBLF, Treasury said. Some within the credit union industry have accused banks of misusing the fund saying the money is not being funneled to small businesses but is actually being used by banks to repay debt acquired through the Troubled Assets Relief Program.
