BBIF Continues to Support Veteran Entrepreneurs With Access to the Veteran Loan Fund

ORLANDO, FL – The Veteran Loan Fund announced that it has raised $15 million in support of veteran-owned businesses, including seed funding from Wells Fargo. The Veteran Loan Fund is a collaborative effort by a national network of Specialized Service Organizations and Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) focused on providing affordable capital and technical assistance to Veteran entrepreneurs with limited access to traditional funding.

“We are honored to be a part of the Veteran Loan Fund. Veterans have sacrificed so much for this country,” said Duane Lewis, COO of BBIF. “It brings me joy that BBIF can be there to support them on their entrepreneurial journey, providing them with the access to capital and business training they need to scale and grow their business.” Lack of access to capital, formal business training or a network of peers are often roadblocks for Veterans who aim to attain financial independence through entrepreneurship. The goal of the Veteran Loan Fund is to fill this gap. Veterans receiving loans from this program benefit from free access to a national network of business coaches and loans with low-interest rates.

National technical assistance partners include Bunker Labs, Vet Met and Vet to CEO. Local partners include Veteran Business Outreach Centers, SCORE and SBDCs. Black Business Investment Fund (FLA) is thrilled to be one of the capital providers (CDFIs) which include Access to Capital For Entrepreneurs (GA), Black Business Investment Fund (FLA), Business Impact Northwest (WA, OR), Colorado Enterprise Fund (CO), Dream Spring (NM), Economic and Community Development Institute (OH), Pathway Lending (TN, AL, KY), PeopleFund – managing member (TX), Pursuit – formerly Excelsior Growth Fund (NJ, NY, PA), and Wisconsin Women Business Initiative Corporation (WI).

Wells Fargo’s support for the Veteran Loan Fund includes a $3.5 million investment and a $1.5 million grant, enabling CDFIs to offer affordable loans to eligible veterans and ensure the fund’s sustainability. Since the launch of the fund, member CDFIs have deployed more than $10.5 million in loans, creating more than 500 jobs and providing 2,200 hours of free technical assistance.

The estimated annual demand for capital from Veteran entrepreneurs that do not receive any kind of funding for their businesses is $100 million. The Veteran Loan Fund plans to close this gap within five years.

“Entrepreneurship can be a very satisfying career path as people transition out of the military, but veterans need more access to capital and expertise to operationalize their business plans,” said Jenny Flores, head of small business growth philanthropy at Wells Fargo. “We support the Veteran Loan Fund’s vision for a more inclusive economy and are proud to offer seed funding for this national effort to boost veteran-owned businesses.”

For more information, please visit https://www.veteranloanfund.com

About BBIF

Created in 1987, BBIF provides loan capital, financial technical assistance, and business development services to support business owners. As a mission-driven lender, BBIF helps businesses grow by offering capital solutions and specialized guidance tailored to their needs. BBIF is a CDFI (Community Development Financial Institution) and CDE (Community Development Enterprise) certified by the U.S. Department of the Treasury CDFI Fund. The organization is also a Community Advantage and Micro Loan lender certified by the U.S. Small Business Administration, a Money Smart for Small Business collaborator with the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and holds an AERIS rating of triple star, A.

Since its inception, BBIF has provided over 1,185 loans totaling $103.6 million and received over $200MM in New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC)  awards, for a leveraged impact of over $625 million in NMTC investments. These efforts have created/retained over 15,000 jobs, while maintaining a historical loan loss rate of 4.08%. Learn more at www.BBIF.com.