Inclusiv Awarded $5 Million to Increase Access to Capital for Small Businesses through CDFI Credit Unions in New York State

Cathie Mahon

New York State’s Empire State Development (“ESD”) awarded Inclusiv $5 million to expand access to small business lending through CDFI credit unions in the state. This is a first-of-its-kind partnership between Inclusiv and ESD that will help increase access to capital for small businesses in low income and underserved communities served by CDFIs throughout the state. 
 
Empire State Development EVP of Small Business and Technology Development Elizabeth Lusskin said, "Small businesses are the engines of New York’s economy, and the anchors of our communities, and Empire State Development is proud to help them succeed. Access to capital remains one of the biggest barriers for Socially and Economically Disadvantaged Individuals and the small businesses they own. By partnering with Inclusiv on this first-of-its-kind SSBCI loan participation program, we are addressing that challenge head-on — strengthening CDFI credit unions and empowering more small businesses to access the resources they need to succeed” 
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Inclusiv will leverage this historic $5 million investment to purchase more than $15 million in small business loans from CDFI-certified credit unions with a strong track record of serving low-income and underserved communities in New York State.  Thanks to this initiative, Inclusiv will help credit unions make more loans to small businesses in their community by purchasing portions of each small business loan under $500,000 -- freeing up lending capital the credit union can use to help another borrower. 
 
This funding further expands Inclusiv’s Small Business Capital Initiative program offerings, which are supported by Mastercard and include our Small Business Lending Training, Loan Participation Marketplace and Loan Loss Fund and Loan Processing and Servicing support. ESD’s investment will greatly increase liquidity for CDFI credit unions while also creating financial opportunity for small businesses that need it the most.  

Inclusiv will start with the 11 CDFI-certified community development credit unions in New York State that are active small business lenders. Additionally, we expect to enroll CDFI credit unions with small business lending programs that are authorized to work in NYS and enroll credit union graduates from the Inclusiv’s Small Business Lending Training to start up their small business lending in the near future.  

“We are grateful for this partnership with the Empire State Development in this groundbreaking small business initiative. CDFI credit unions play a crucial role investing in small businesses that are too often turned away by big banks.   We look forward to helping businesses to grow, increase their revenue and create jobs in their communities through responsive and responsible credit union lending,” Cathie Mahon, President/CEO of Inclusiv.
 
Inclusiv’s Small Business Capital Initiative helps establish and scale business lending programs to better serve communities across the country. We aim to increase the number of community lenders that offer business loans, expanding the availability of affordable and high-impact small business loans. Business lending positions credit unions as key stakeholders in and drivers of their local economies. ​

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