Loan Process

Our approach to lending is different from more transactional financial institutions: we understand that the legacy of systemic injustice means that the communities most in need of patient, non-extractive capital are those least likely to get it.  For example, the supposedly “objective” notions of risk and creditworthiness used to evaluate business ventures are deeply racialized in the mainstream financial system.

We also understand that growing a democratic economy at the community level requires a supportive infrastructure to teach the cooperative business skills that are key to success.  Our model leverages philanthropic contributions to fund hands-on technical assistance and cooperative teaching support in the lending process, simultaneously making the pool of projects we can support more inclusive while increasing the likelihood of loan repayment.