The SA Future Trust (SAFT), the brainchild of Nicky and Jonathan Oppenheimer to help distressed small businesses survive the lockdown, has exhausted its available resources of R1.125bn.
The Oppenheimers’ initiative to help small enterprises survive the lockdown is fully committed. SAFT was established by the patriarchs of the family to help small businesses survive the lockdown by providing interest-free loans to pay a portion of employees’ wages over a period of 15 weeks.
Applications were processed through the country’s largest banks, allowing the trust to disburse the funds in a period of six weeks from inception.
As a sign of how desperate things have become, FNB said on Monday it received more than 12,000 qualifying SAFT applications from businesses. To date, approximately 2,300 businesses have signed up for the funding scheme.
The Oppenheimers donated R1bn to the trust, which will be used to assist and help grow small businesses once any funds are repaid.
In addition to the initial donation, the trust raised a further R125m from third parties that included philanthropists associated with Allan Gray.
The entire amount (R1.125bn) has now been committed through approved loans, the trust said on Tuesday. Thus far, R703m in signed loans have begun providing relief to 103,455 employees at 11,203 small, medium, and micro-enterprises.
Oppenheimer Covid-19 relief fund is fully exhausted
Image: SUPPLIED
The SA Future Trust (SAFT), the brainchild of Nicky and Jonathan Oppenheimer to help distressed small businesses survive the lockdown, has exhausted its available resources of R1.125bn.
The Oppenheimers’ initiative to help small enterprises survive the lockdown is fully committed. SAFT was established by the patriarchs of the family to help small businesses survive the lockdown by providing interest-free loans to pay a portion of employees’ wages over a period of 15 weeks.
Applications were processed through the country’s largest banks, allowing the trust to disburse the funds in a period of six weeks from inception.
As a sign of how desperate things have become, FNB said on Monday it received more than 12,000 qualifying SAFT applications from businesses. To date, approximately 2,300 businesses have signed up for the funding scheme.
The Oppenheimers donated R1bn to the trust, which will be used to assist and help grow small businesses once any funds are repaid.
In addition to the initial donation, the trust raised a further R125m from third parties that included philanthropists associated with Allan Gray.
The entire amount (R1.125bn) has now been committed through approved loans, the trust said on Tuesday. Thus far, R703m in signed loans have begun providing relief to 103,455 employees at 11,203 small, medium, and micro-enterprises.
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