Supports fund-aiding women- and minority-owned small businesses

From Virginia Business | By

Virginia Community Capital received a $7 million investment from Truist Financial Corp. to support the organization’s Economic Equity Fund, a loan fund to expand access to capital and technical assistance for women- and minority-owned small businesses.

VCC’s equity fund was launched in 2021 in response to the disproportionate impact of the pandemic on women- and minority-owned businesses in the state. The investment from Truist will allow VCC to enhance the fund’s mission to drive equitable economic growth in underserved communities across the state, VCC said in a news release Monday. VCC has loaned more than $6.1 million to borrowers through the fund so far, with additional loans in process. 

“Truist’s significant investment in the Economic Equity Fund shows their commitment to our shared mission of increasing access to capital and resources for Virginia’s historically underestimated small business owners,” VCC President and CEO Amir Kirkwood said in a statement. “We are grateful for their partnership, and we look forward to further supporting the aspirations of the commonwealth’s women- and BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, people of color)-led small businesses together.” 

The investment is part of a $120 million joint commitment from Truist and the Truist Foundation to support small businesses nationwide, with a focus on minority- and women-owned businesses.

“This investment will provide women- and minority-owned businesses with access to capital and training that can be used to inspire and build better lives and communities,” Thomas Ransom, Virginia regional president for Truist, said in a statement. “Our partnership with VCC will support entrepreneurs and help unlock new opportunities for growth in communities across the commonwealth.” 

Established in 2006 by a bipartisan group of state legislators to serve low-to-moderate-income communities, VCC is a $275 million community development financial institution with offices in Christiansburg, Norfolk and Richmond.

Truist is based in Charlotte, North Carolina, and has assets totaling more than $548 billion as of Sept. 30.