The coronavirus pandemic has affected the lives of millions around the world. Steps are still being taken to reduce the damage caused by the virus. Former Lakers star Magic Johnson has come up with a relief plan of his own. 

The Wall Street Journal posted a tweet on May 17th, announcing that Magic’s life-insurance company will provide $100 million in loans to minority-owned businesses. As small-business owners are the most affected by the pandemic, the former NBA champion wants to do his part to help them. 

Magic Johnson further validated the news, by sharing Wall Street’s tweet and writing a message on his Twitter handle. “I’m excited to announce that my company Equitrust will be partnering with MBE Capital Partners to deploy $100M in PPP loans to minority-owned businesses!”

Magic Johnson is doing his part to help the nation through the pandemic

Magic has the majority stake in EquiTrust. Moreover, his company will now be working with MBE Capital Partners, a firm that specializes in providing asset-based loans for minority-owned small businesses. The process will take place through the nation’s Paycheck Protection Program. MBE Capital’s CEO Rafael Martinez also said that they aim to assist about 100,000 businesses back to their feet.  

“Johnson’s EquiTrust is providing critical financial support to underserved communities and businesses that have been traditionally neglected,” EquiTrust and MBE Capital Partners said in a joint news release, as per CNN. “These small and diverse businesses often have difficulty developing strong lending relationships with big banks.”

The pandemic has taken a huge toll on small businesses. Magic mainly wants to focus on women, and the people from the minority community who have set-up their trade. “These are incredible businesses, small businesses, that have been the pillar of our community that also employ a lot of black and brown people in our community,” Johnson said Sunday on MSNBC. “We wanted to make sure that minority-owned businesses got small business loans through the PPP program.”

Top Stories

NBC Pulls Plug on Michael Jordan Plans After Contradictions Over $40M Payday

Tragic Death of Shaq & Kobe’s Ex-Teammate Linked to Fatal Mistake, Authorities Confirm

Unrivaled CEO Alex Bazzell Downplays Concern as Year 2 Ratings Slide Raises Questions

LeBron James’ Ex-Teammate Faces Arrest Over Robbery Allegations

“He’ll Never Get a Ring”: Luka Doncic Blasted Again Amid Lakers Trade Demand

 Magic Johnson is doing his part to help the country sustain through a hard time. On the other hand, the return of the NBA is largely unknown. With the permission of the league, teams have begun training at their practice facilities. While some teams have agreed to it, others want to play it safe and have kept their training facilities shut. Hopefully, if everything settles down soon we can see the league back in action from July.