Loan fund to help advance social, economic, and racial justice in communities experiencing poverty and disinvestment
Columbus, OH (February 25, 2022) – To help accelerate the work of supporting underserved small businesses throughout Ohio, ECDI has received a $3.25 million award from the Finance Justice Fund, a program of the Opportunity Finance Network (OFN).
OFN’s Finance Justice Fund was created to support Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI). The Funds are investments of over $1 billion in capital from corporate and philanthropic partners to individuals and communities, particularly to Black, Latinx, Indigenous, and rural communities, that are most underserved by mainstream finance.
This loan from the OFN Finance Justice Fund will help ECDI continue and aggressively increase our support for those who face systemic and historical disinvestment, poverty, and barriers to capital access. “Our mission is to invest in people to create measurable and enduring social and economic change.” Inna Kinney, Founder and CEO of ECDI explains, “We are so honored to be awarded these national dollars to invest in Ohioans who experience systemic barriers.”
OFN President and CEO, Lisa Mensah, emphasized that the goal is help address long-standing issues of disinvestment, the racial wealth gap, and persistent poverty in our country. “CDFIs, like ECDI, as well as Finance Justice Fund partners and investors are helping to advance social, economic, and racial justice one loan at a time.” She said.
For information, please visit: ofn.org/finance-justice-fund
MEDIA RELEASE
Media Contact: Amee BellWanzo
For Immediate Release: February 25, 2022
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ABOUT ECDI
ECDI is a nonprofit organization, dedicated to assuring underserved and underbanked entrepreneurs – regardless of where they came from, where they live, their gender or their race – have access to funding and a range of business incubation services they need to succeed. Based in Columbus, with offices in Cleveland, Cincinnati, Akron, Toledo, and Portsmouth we are a one-stop resource center, serving small businesses in OH, KY and IN. As the leading SBA microloan intermediary, a certified Community Development Corporation, and Treasury-designated Community Development Financial Institution, we are proud to have disbursed over $138 million through 6,108 small business loans, to help create or retain more than 14,300 jobs since 2004. Learn more: ecdi.org
ABOUT OFN
Opportunity Finance Network (OFN) is the national association of community development financial institutions (CDFIs). They help money flow to people and places where traditional finance doesn’t reach by maximizing the effectiveness of OFN member and non-member CDFIs through direct financing, learning opportunities, industry events, and advocacy. Currently, OFN manages more than $980 million in capital and offers a range of products and services to help CDFIs lend and invest in markets underserved by mainstream banks. Learn more: OFN.org
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