The U.S. banking system is strong, well-capitalized and working diligently to help individuals and businesses work through the challenges they are facing as a result of the coronavirus pandemic, ABA President and CEO Rob Nichols said today In an interview with Cheddar TV. “Banks are in overdrive helping customers and clients,” and have been doing so since the earliest days of the crisis, Nichols said.
For example, bankers have been working constructively with customers to offer forbearance or payment deferral options ahead of actions by the government and regulatory agencies, while also offering services digitally to meet customers’ banking needs. Banks are also playing a pivotal role in facilitating the distribution of $350 billion in loans to small businesses through the Small Business Administration’s Paycheck Protection Program, a new program that was created by the CARES Act signed by President Trump last week.
“We are entering this healthcare crisis from a position of strength,” Nichols said of the banking sector, thanks to a combination of industry-led, regulatory and legislative changes that have taken place over the past decade. “The 5,100 banks in the U.S. are doing everything they can to help borrowers.”
