ICBA said a congressional report on financial technology participants in the Paycheck Protection Program validates that community banks were the unequivocal leaders of the U.S. economic recovery during the pandemic.
PPP Report: The Select Subcommittee on the Coronavirus Crisis's report found that fintech companies facilitated a disproportionately high rate of fraudulent and otherwise ineligible loans through the PPP.
ICBA Release: In a national news release, ICBA President and CEO Rebeca Romero Rainey said community banks' relationship-based banking model and deep understanding of their customers and communities made them a superior PPP alternative to nonbank lenders and helped them identify and eliminate many lending risks that fintechs were not prepared to address.
Partnership Model: "The fintech model works best and provides the least risk when operating within the regulated space by partnering with community banks, known for their commitment to building trust and maintaining an appropriate risk management structure," Romero Rainey said.
