General Motors paid $1 billion in bailout money on Friday as part of its first quarterly repayment plan on the government-backed loan, the Treasury Department said.
The GM check brought the total amount of repaid TARP funds to $119 billion, with an additional $45 billion in repayments expected next week from other institutions.
“The Administration’s Automotive Industry Financing Program (AIFP) prevented a significant disruption of the American automotive industry, which would have posed a systemic risk to financial market stability and caused broader economic harm,” the Treasury Department said in a statement on Friday afternoon. “After emerging from bankruptcy in July, General Motors is on a path to stability and poised to return additional taxpayer investments.”
General Motors CEO Ed Whitacre said the automaker had also paid $192 million to the governments of Canada and the Canadian province of Ontario.
“We are grateful for the supports the governments have provided us,” Whitacre said in a statement. “We look forward to continuing repayments through June 2010, at which time the balances will be paid in full, assuming no downturn in the economy or business.”
US taxpayers currently own about 60 percent of the automaker.
