Sean “Diddy” Combs and his multimedia company, Combs Enterprises, have announced the second phase of the “Our Fair Share” PPP loan initiative. This time, Combs is teaming up with JPMorgan Chase, The Harbor Bank of Maryland, CDC Small Business Finance, Kabbage, PayPal, and Square to provide capital to those who participate in the program.
In a press release announcement, it was confirmed that this program helps hundreds of thousands of minority-owned companies learn about the government’s Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) and connects them to approved Small Business Administration (SBA) lenders that can process applications for these potentially business-saving loans.
Combs Enterprises’ efforts have, essentially, put Black-owned businesses on an equal playing field to their white counterparts. According to Newsweek, “the PPP loan program in total gave out 5.2 million individual loans amounting to $525 billion, including millions in payouts to churches and other organizations that pay no taxes. Meanwhile, Black and minority owners were pushed to ‘the end of the line.'”
This, essentially, meant that many Black-owned businesses would be belly-up without the help of Combs Enterprises and the Our Fair Share initiative.
“Black and Brown businesses have been hit harder than other businesses during the pandemic,” said Combs, in the press release statement. “Our entrepreneurs are fighting to survive and keep their employees, and we’ll continue to fight for them. I’m thrilled that the team at JPMorgan Chase recognizes the immediate need to help make the process easier and more equitable.”
