An empty restaurant serving only takeout due to the novel coronavirus, COVID-19, outbreak is seen in Washington, DC, on March 18, 2020. (Photo by NICHOLAS KAMM / AFP) (Photo by NICHOLAS KAMM/AFP via Getty Images)
JPMorgan Chase will invest $8 million in small businesses in the U.S., Europe, and China that have been hit hard by the public health and economic impacts of the COVID-19 crisis.
The investment is part of a much larger $50 million global philanthropic commitment to help provide emergency healthcare, food, and other humanitarian relief to vulnerable communities and existing nonprofit partners.
Chase will deploy the first $15 million “promptly” and the remainder over time. As consumers self-quarantine and cities go on lockdown, small businesses have already been majorly disrupted by the pandemic and are preparing for much worse over the coming weeks.
About half of small businesses have 14 or fewer cash buffer days, according to a JPMorgan research report on small business financial health in urban communities. In black or Hispanic communities, most small businesses have fewer than 21 cash buffer days.
Chase is working with its customers, including small businesses, to waive fees, extend payment due dates for cards, auto loans, and mortgages, and increase credit lines as needed due to coronavirus-related challenges, a spokesman for the company said.
Like most banks, it’s also directing people to its mobile app, but many small businesses still require branches to make change for drawers and to deposit cash.
The bank’s financial commitment follows one by Facebook, which said Tuesday it would invest a whopping $100 million in now struggling small businesses. Delivery startups like Grubhub and DoorDash are deferring or waiving commissions to encourage people to continue giving business to independent local restaurants.
Kraft Heinz is splitting into two companies a decade after they joined in a massive merger that created one of the biggest food companies on the planet. One of the companies will include brands such as Heinz, Philadelphia cream cheese and Kraft Mac & Cheese. The other will include brands like Oscar Mayer, Kraft Singles and Lunchables. When the company formed in 2015 it wanted to capitalize on its massive scale, but shifting tastes complicated those plans, with households seeking to introduce healthier options at the table. Kraft Heinz's net revenue has fallen every year since 2020.
About 780,000 pressure washers sold at retailers like Home Depot are being recalled across the U.S. and Canada, due to a projectile hazard that has resulted in fractures and other injuries among some consumers.
President Donald Trump has fired one of two Democratic members of the U.S. Surface Transportation Board to break a 2-2 tie ahead of the board considering the largest railroad merger ever proposed.
Ford is recalling more than 355,000 of its pickup trucks across the U.S. because of an instrument panel display failure that’s resulted in critical information, like warning lights and vehicle speed, not showing up on the dashboard.
