You might've heard some rumblings about how the economy is doing kind of, well, crummy. While some folks are struggling just to make ends meet, entrepreneurs have it slightly tougher because they must pay their bills and secure extra capital for their million-dollar ideas.
Well, Senator Dick Durbin hears your plea, and he's teamed up with small-business lender ACCION Chicago to double its maximum loan size to $50,000 for small biz owners who can't secure bank financing.
“Increased federal funding for microlending programs allows organizations like ACCION to extend credit to small businesses that are ready to expand if we can provide them with the seed money to start growing and hire more workers. Small businesses are the engine of this economy and the key to recovery,” Durbin said in a statement.
The Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund – which is also administered through FSGG – received $221 million in the FY12 omnibus. The CDFI Fund supports microlending to individuals and small businesses in addition to project-based financing in underserved areas. Many CDFIs participate in the SBA’s microloan program, including ACCION.
As a result of increased funding, ACCION will double its maximum loan amount in 2012 from $25,000 to $50,000 to help fill the growing gap between high quality small business borrowers and conventional lenders who no longer will provide loans to them.
The 50-large loans are available starting Wednesday, according to a release circulated by ACCION Chicago.
To apply for ACCION Chicago microlending, hop over to this link.
David Wolinsky is a freelance writer and a lifelong Chicagoan. In addition to currently serving as an interviewer-writer for Adult Swim, he's also a columnist for EGM. He was the Chicago city editor for The Onion A.V. Club where he provided in-depth daily coverage of this city's bustling arts/entertainment scene for half a decade. When not playing video games for work he's thinking of dashing out to Chicago Diner, Pizano's, or Yummy Yummy. His first career aspirations were to be a game-show host.
