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Venture-funded company eligibility for CARES Act SBA forgivable loans program

On Friday (3/27/2020), the US government passed the CARES Act to provide economic relief to individuals and businesses. A $350 billion small business lending facility was included in the relief bill. This webinar addresses whether VC-funded companies are eligible for these loans (up to $10 million), which are forgivable under certain conditions. 

The “affiliation” rules of the Small Business Association (SBA) complicate matters for venture-backed companies. In this latest Navigating Uncertainty panel session, Thejo Kote will interview two nationally recognized attorneys who are both on the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) task force working on behalf of all venture backed companies, to make it easier for them to access SBA loans.  Mike Kendall, the co-head of law firm Goodwin’s Private Equity Group, and Kathryn Hickey, partner Piliero Mazza (see bios below) will provide clarity on the program, review eligibility requirements, and explore possible actions to be taken in response to the affiliation rule.

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What you’ll learn

  • The size and terms of the SBA small business loans and what they can be used for.
  • Eligibility requirements, and the conditions for loan forgiveness.
  • The SBA definition of “affiliate” and how it can impact venture-backed companies.
  • Possible steps that can be taken to ensure that the affiliates definition does not negatively impact your eligibility.
  • How to apply and how long it may take.

About the speakers.

Michael Kendall

Michael Kendall

Co-head at Goodwin's Private Equity group

Mike focuses his corporate finance and securities practice on private equity and venture capital transactions, mergers and acquisitions, public securities offerings and representing emerging growth companies. Mike lectures frequently on corporate finance and securities law, and teaches a course on private equity and venture capital transactions at Boston University School of Law. He is also currently a member of the National Venture Capital Association (NVCA) taskforce working on behalf of all venture-backed companies to make it easier for them to access the SBA loans, and is on the front lines of helping influence the legislation and how it's implemented by the SBA.

Kathryn Hickey

Kathryn Hickey

Partner at Piliero Mazza

Kathryn is an expert in SBA policies and related case law. She concentrates her practice in general business, mergers and acquisitions, venture capital investments, and commercial contracting. She counsels companies on entity formation and structure, corporate governance, employment issues, commercial leasing, licensing and regulatory compliance. Ms. Hickey also represents companies in the negotiation and implementation of institutional financing and commercial loan transactions with large institutional lenders. Her experience in venture capital involves representing companies and investors in venture capital and angel investment transactions at various stages of growth.

Thejo Kote

Thejo Kote

CEO and Founder at Airbase

A seasoned entrepreneur, Thejo is the Founder and CEO of Airbase, the cloud-based spend management platform for growing companies. Prior to Airbase, Thejo co-founded Automatic which was acquired by SiriusXM in 2017.

Learn how the leading Spend Management Platform can help your company scale.

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