Wells Fargo to donate $400 million in PPP fees to small business recovery

Fresh off reports the top 10 PPP bank lenders will gain more $3.8 billion in fee revenue from the program, Wells committed to put $400 million it earned in PPP processing fees toward small business recovery efforts. The bank’s new Open For Business Fund is geared at nonprofit entities and institutions, with an emphasis on minority entrepreneurs. It’s committing at least $28 million for non-profit community lenders that serve Black entrepreneurs.

Why should we care?
Wells’ announcement is part of banks’ moves to counter perceptions they’re unjustifiably profiting from the PPP program that’s meant to help struggling businesses. Other large banks -- including JPMorgan, BofA, and Citi -- have made similar pledges, but haven’t disclosed how much they will donate. The pressure is on for large bank lenders to show their commitment to small-business recovery efforts, especially given that Wells and others have been accused in recent lawsuits of prioritizing larger loans ahead of smaller ones to maximize profits. Other large lenders say they will also need to invest a portion of fee revenue into PPP program infrastructure.