Womply, the local commerce platform that provides apps, APIs, marketing, and financial tools to make local commerce happen, today announced a new partnership with Sunshine State Economic Development Corporation (SEDCO). The partnership combines their expertise as an SBA-approved lender with Womply’s breakthrough PPP Fast Lane process to allow even the smallest businesses, independent contractors, sole proprietors, and self-employed individuals to access vital Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) funding with as little friction as possible.
“In this round of PPP funding we’ve deployed our data platform to build PPP Fast lane and help the smallest businesses and individuals with the process of eligibility, qualification, verification, fraud detection, and streamlining PPP applications”
In 2020, Womply helped more than 100,000 businesses access the Paycheck Protection Program through its network of SBA-approved lenders. The program played a critical role in stabilizing these small businesses and protecting jobs for hundreds of thousands of workers during the darkest days of the COVID-19 pandemic, and in 2021, Womply has already helped over 300,000 more businesses, gig workers, contractors, and self-employed borrowers get funded.
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“We’re very excited to be able to connect borrowers with SEDCO to get their PPP loans,” said Womply founder and CEO, Toby Scammell. “PPP Fast Lane was designed from the start specifically for the smallest businesses and individuals that haven’t received government stimulus from PPP or EIDL loans. By removing friction that only applies to larger businesses we hope to make PPP less confusing and help hundreds of thousands of small businesses, contractors, gig workers, and self-employed people.”
SEDCO is well-established as a proven SBA lender, and its Community Advantage loan program, as well as its Women/Minority Business Fund loan program, demonstrate SEDCO’s commitment to serving the under-served community as well as the individual. PPP Fast Lane will make it possible for them to serve an even greater number.
The most recent 2021 updates to the PPP rules were intended to prioritize smaller businesses and under-served communities, yet many truly small businesses, independent contractors, sole proprietors, and self-employed individuals may still be reluctant to apply for PPP funding, and may not even be aware that they can qualify.
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Womply’s data shows that as businesses get smaller they are less likely to:
- Know they may be eligible for PPP
- Know how to apply for PPP
- Have a trusted advisor or banker who can help them understand the rules and apply
Brooke Mirenda, President and CEO of Sunshine State Economic Development Corporation, said, “SEDCO is very excited about this partnership with Womply. We have always been proactive about providing vital financial services and support to America’s small businesses and underserved communities. With Womply’s core focus on small businesses and their commitment to helping more people learn about the PPP and get their applications submitted easily, we know this partnership will result in urgent funding for a lot of people who desperately need it during these difficult times.”
PPP Fast Lane is a simple, web-based data collection process that takes about five minutes. PPP Fast Lane includes multiple layers of fraud prevention and identity verification, which is essential to serving PPP loans at scale in accordance with government rules. Borrowers don’t need a registered business entity, business license, official place of business, business bank account, accountant, lawyer, or business banker to apply for PPP. Immediately after completing PPP Fast Lane, applicants will be matched with their SBA approved lender.
“In this round of PPP funding we’ve deployed our data platform to build PPP Fast lane and help the smallest businesses and individuals with the process of eligibility, qualification, verification, fraud detection, and streamlining PPP applications,” Scammell said. “We’re pleased to see Congress, the White House, the SBA, and innovative lending partners such as SEDCO working to help these deserving small businesses and workers. We are dedicated to expanding our programs to reach new applicants who can put PPP money to work rebuilding America.”
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