Small business ownership holds potential for long-term, intergenerational wealth, but racial disparities in capital access persist. Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) are vital for equitable growth, providing capital and technical support to small business owners, especially women and people of color in low-and moderate-income communities. This panel will highlight successful CDFI models, identify support gaps, and propose actions to increase CDFI effectiveness.
● Discover the critical and complex role CDFIs play in an equity-focused small business strategy and the conditions that make them uniquely relevant today.
● Gain insights on how CDFIs tend to be more community-responsive and culturally competent than traditional finance and how philanthropy can strengthen their capacity.
● Identify grantmaking channels to support CDFIs in generating wealth for undercapitalized communities.
CDFIs: Essential Partners for Racial Equity in Small Business
Track
DEI, Ownership and Impact
Format
Panel (3 speakers)
Speakers
- NameBulbul Gupta
- TitleCEO
- OrganizationPacific Community Ventures
- NameWillow Lung Amam Ph.D.
- TitleUrban Studies and Planning Professor
- OrganizationUniversity of Maryland
- NameDarrin Williams
- TitleCEO
- OrganizationSouthern Bancorp, Inc
Description
Small business ownership holds potential for long-term, intergenerational wealth, but racial disparities in capital access persist. Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) are vital for equitable growth, providing capital and technical support to small business owners, especially women and people of color in low-and moderate-income communities. This panel will highlight successful CDFI models, identify support gaps, and propose actions to increase CDFI effectiveness.
● Discover the critical and complex role CDFIs play in an equity-focused small business strategy and the conditions that make them uniquely relevant today.
● Gain insights on how CDFIs tend to be more community-responsive and culturally competent than traditional finance and how philanthropy can strengthen their capacity.
● Identify grantmaking channels to support CDFIs in generating wealth for undercapitalized communities.
