A federal judge in Maryland has declined to issue an injunction requiring Bank of America to accept PPP loan applications from applicants that do not currently have a credit relationship with the bank. The ruling comes as some banks have limited PPP applications to current customers, often due to Bank Secrecy Act requirements or limited capacity to process a massive number of loan applications.
The judge noted that the CARES Act authorizing the PPP does not expressly provide a private right of action; moreover, she said, Bank of America’s policy in this case did not “run afoul of the CARES Act. Given the plain statutory language, the Court is not at liberty to impose further limitations on lenders.”