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Thursday, Mar 28, 2024

Grant to VEDC Unlocks Access to Larger Fund

A $100,000 grant by Comerica Bank to the Valley Economic Development Center will help the organization access $700,000 in U.S. Small Business Administration funds to make 100 additional microloans over the next year. Comerica Bank presented the check to the VEDC’s leaders on Dec. 1, following a request in July by the organization for financial help. While the organization has been eligible for a $700,000 pot of money from the Small Business Administration, the organization could not access it until it had set aside a loss loan reserve, or a percentage of the total fund to cover potential losses. Warren Cooley, the VEDC’s vice president of operations, said the grant enables the organization to set up the reserve and help struggling business owners. The SBA fund will provide loans ranging from $5,000 to $10,000 per borrower. “It’ll make a significant impact for small businesses throughout the L.A. region because it gives them access to money they need,” he said. “It’s money they wouldn’t have accessed, too, because they don’t have access to it in the banks.” Cooley said the grant also helps the organization fulfill its goal of significantly increasing its microloan activity. With the additional 100 loans made with the SBA funds, the organization will provide a total of about 180 to 200 microloans next year, compared to the 70 per year it usually provides. “It’s more than double the number of loans that we’ve historically done,” Cooley said. Don Kincey, Comerica Bank’s community development manager for California, said the company chose to fund the organization’s loan loss reserve because of how far the investment would stretch. “The Valley Economic Development Center is the perfect model for leveraging funds from the federal government,” Kincey said. “We had to only give $100,000, and all of a sudden it leveraged close to $1 million.” Comerica Bank has been contributing to the Valley Economic Development Center for at least six years and was honored to assist the organization again once the company was notified of the specific need, Kincey said.

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