Clearent Partners With Womply to Streamline Access to Paycheck Protection Program Funds for Small Businesses
ST. LOUIS – April 17, 2020 – Clearent, a leading payments solution provider, today announced it has partnered with Womply, a software and API company serving small businesses and app developers, to provide its merchants with streamlined access to forgivable emergency loans through the federal Paycheck Protection Program.
As a registered loan agent, Womply is working with banks and financial institutions approved by the U.S. Small Business Administration to streamline the complicated process. Womply has built a robust business process and support system to help small businesses get a jumpstart on their PPP loan application, collect the required documentation, and save their place in line with SBA-approved lenders.
“Small business owners all over the country have bravely shuttered their doors to slow the spread of COVID-19, and need help to protect their staff.“ said Pam Joseph, Cleareant’s CEO. “Through our partnership with Womply, we are able to help business owners efficiently navigate the application process so they can quickly access economic relief programs provided by the government.“
As the world looks for more ways to prevent the spread of COVID-19, enabling secure payment acceptance in a way that prioritizes wellness is paramount. Clearent’s virtual terminal and Paylink solution allow small businesses to do both by giving them the capabilities needed to securely accept card-not-present payments via phone call or text. To help small businesses gain a deeper understanding of these solutions and insights to trends that are shaping the industry, Clearent has developed a COVID-19 microsite with free dedicated online resources.
In late March, the federal government approved $349 billion in emergency funding for small businesses through the PPP provision of the $2 trillion CARES Act for economic relief from the COVID-19 outbreak. The PPP enables private lenders, approved by the SBA, to facilitate these forgivable loans to small businesses.
Even though the original SBA PPP program reached capacity on April 15, 2020, industry experts believe the program will receive another $250B within a week, and likely more money after that to provide added relief for the nation’s smallest businesses.
Small businesses have faced outsized financial challenges as the COVID-19 pandemic has brought the U.S. economy to an unprecedented slowdown. According to Womply analysis, small business revenue has seen a steep and sustained decline since COVID-19 pressures came to a head in the U.S. in mid-March, with potentially millions of businesses effectively shutting down as transaction volume completely dries up amid stay-at-home orders to flatten the coronavirus curve.
“We’ve never seen an economic situation like this before, and small businesses that make up half of the U.S. economy are exposed more than any other sector of the economy,“ says Cory Capoccia, President and Co-Founder. “The PPP loan initiative is a vital first step to stabilizing these businesses, and our goal is to make the process as fast, efficient, and effective as possible. We are not a lender, but we can connect small businesses to lenders faster than anyone. Time is of the essence for millions of businesses at imminent risk of dying.“
All Clearent merchants can review a detailed FAQ on the PPP program, see which documents your lender will likely need, and start your application right away. In partnership with Clearent, Womply’s dedicated support team is standing by to help.
About Clearent
Clearent is a full-service, payments solution provider with more than 400 employees, 45,000 merchants and $16 billion in processing volume. From traditional point-of-sale terminals, mobile solutions and tablet-based systems to a custom-built virtual terminal, e-commerce plug-ins and hosted payments, Clearent helps small business owners securely accept payments just about anywhere. Headquartered in St. Louis, Missouri, the company has consistently been named to several prestigious lists year after year, including the Inc. 5000 list of fastest-growing companies, The Nilson Report’s list of top U.S. acquirers, The St. Louis Post-Dispatch Top Workplaces award and the St. Louis Business Journal’s list of fastest-growing private companies.
About Womply
Womply’s mission is to help small businesses thrive in a digital world. Founded in 2011, Womply is the leading provider of data and software to local businesses and the top software partner to the payments industry. Our AI-powered data platform powers our CRM and marketing software, which serves more than 450,000 small businesses in every corner of America. In addition, Womply’s data platform helps innovative developers create more powerful software for businesses and consumers alike.