BREAKING NEWS FOR LOCAL SMALL BUSINESSES

New Loan Program to Help

Small Businesses in Winnebago County

March 25, 2020

Today, community leaders and members of the local banking industry, announced the creation of the COVID-19 Small Business Emergency Loan Fund.

Due to the outbreak of COVID-19, many small businesses have suffered a devastating economic impact. These loans, available from $5,000 to $50,000, can be used for working capital and to help make ends meet during this critical time. The loan will be bridge financial while the small businesses seek funding from the Small Business Administration Disaster Relief Fund program.

The loan fund, established by the Northern Illinois Community Development Corporation and managed by the Rockford Local Development Corporation, is funded by the City of Rockford, Winnebago County, Illinois Bank and Trust, Associated Bank, WinTrust, Midwest Community Bank, Blackhawk Bank, Northwest Bank, Stillman BancCorp and Sunil Puri.

To date, $2 Million has been raised with other financial institutions committing to support the fund.

To be eligible businesses must:

♦ Be located in Winnebago County

♦ Be for-profit entities

♦ Have less than 100 employees

♦ Be experiencing a business interruption or cash flow issue due to COVID-19

♦ Meet an average credit score

♦ Have full year of operations or other financial information

HOW TO APPLY

First, submit your application to the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) for a low-interest, long-term disaster loan. Since the local Bridge Loan program was created to help small businesses while they're waiting to receive the SBA funding, this is an important first step.

CLICK HERE to submit your SBA application. Note that the website may be temporarily unavailable for maintenance.

Next, contact NICDC to apply for the local COVID-19 Small Business Emergency Loan:

♦ Email John Phelps at John@rldc.us and Andrew Jury at Andrew@rldc.us

♦ Or call 815.987.8675

NICDC is a multi-bank community development corporation owned by nine local financial institutions. Its mission is to provide gap financing for small businesses in the Rockford region to advance business formation and expansion, job creation, and investment throughout the region.