The Massachusetts Banking Partners Small Business Loan Program – known as Banking Partners – is a new small business loan program designed to improve access to financing by very small businesses that are receiving one-on-one assistance and training from small business assistance providers.

Eligible Businesses

For the Banking Partners program, very small businesses include businesses located in Massachusetts that generally have 20 or fewer employees, are located in low- or moderate-income census tracts and/or require small loan sizes.

Participating Banks

Banks that are participating in Banking Partners agree to:

1. Accept referrals of small business applicants who are receiving services from not-for-profit small business assistance providers. Lenders will also refer businesses that need additional assistance to providers for counseling and training.



2. Offer small business loans at a rate below the lender’s typical market rate. The exact rate will vary from bank to bank.



3. Offer smaller loans than those generally available. Loan size will vary from bank to bank.



4. Consider financing for early-stage businesses.
   
   

For More Information

If you are a small business owner and want to find out if your business is located in the low- or moderate-income census tract, click here

To get a list of business assistance providers that work with small businesses to help them get ready for financing, click here

To get a list of participating banks, click here

Banks interested in participating in Banking Partners can click here for a detailed list of program guidelines.

Banking Partners is sponsored by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, the Massachusetts Bankers Association, the Massachusetts Community & Banking Council and the Massachusetts Small Business Assistance Advisory Council.

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