The SBA said it did not believe that Congress intended for businesses like the investment firms to receive Paycheck Protection Program financing. The Trump administration on Friday said hedge funds and private equity firms are ineligible for small business rescue loans, the latest crackdown on Wall Street-backed interests trying to access the money. The Small Business Administration included the restrictions on investment companies in a new rule governing the Paycheck Protection Program, which Congress created to keep small businesses and their employees afloat during the Covid-19 pandemic.