Democratizing Capital Access for Underserved Small Businesses through SSBCI

The State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) is a $10 billion federal program to deliver capital and technical assistance (TA) to small business owners across the country. California’s Office of the Small Business Advocate (CalOSBA) is pioneering a unique TA initiative, Success, Capital Access, and Leadership for Entrepreneurs (SCALE). SCALE is aimed at equipping trusted service providers operating in low- and moderate-income communities with the resources and support they need to ensure entrepreneurs typically disconnected from traditional capital receive their fair share of SSBCI dollars.

To support SCALE’s success, CAMEO Network is leading coordination of 60+ community-based capital, TA, and outreach providers—a mesh network dedicated to collaboratively helping underserved small business owners access and navigate SSBCI capital pipelines. CAMEO Network provides these organizations with data management, reporting, and grant compliance support, as well as connects them to the financial, accounting, and legal guidance they need to help their small business clients take advantage of SSBCI-backed products.

Join CalOSBA and CAMEO Network to learn how this public-private partnership model can be replicated in your local ecosystems to strengthen service delivery and small business success.