US Fed Extends Main St. Lending Program

The United States Federal Reserve announced on Tuesday that it had extended the end date for the Main Street Lending Program by eight days, Reuters reported.

The move comes to help process an increased number of last-minute applications.

It is worth noting that the United States Secretary of Treasury, Steven Mnuchin, recently said that ending lending programs by the Federal Reserve on December 31 is necessary with the market now in need for grants more than loans.

Mnuchin urged Congress to pass legislation to provide such grants.

The move was reportedly criticized by the Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and Chicago Federal Reserve Bank President Charles Evans, according to Reuters.

“Markets should be very comfortable that we have plenty of capacity left,” Mnuchin said

The program provides small- and mid-sized businesses (SMBs) a credit line to help them cope with the impact of the Coronavirus pandemic.

The program will now remain open until January 8.