Small Business Financing

The Growth of the SBA Impact Investment Program

The U.S.A. Small Business Administration (SBA) Impact Investment Fund has tripled in value within the last 12 months, in accordance with a recent report put out with the SBA.

This is great news for communities and people interested in the force of social entrepreneurship to increase employment opportunities and economic development in their neighborhoods.

In some sectors, such as industries and geographies, the results have not been as robust as investors want those to be. Information continues to be sent to professional fund managers with specialties and expertise in areas like educational technology, clean energy and also advanced manufacturing. Additional section of proven results include investments in distressed communities and low income areas throughout the country. Over the board, SBICs are filling the gaps of capital formation in the middle market in the low end.

In 2014, the SBA started with two Impact SBICs by using a beginning investment of $182 million and as the year stumbled on a detailed, the significance had grown in addition to 4 more Impact funds to between $442 and $572 million of total assets under management. The variances are the effect of the volume of credit guarantees which are approve and then placed into action.

The fact that the price of the impact fund continues to be well below the amount of $1 billion amount of leverage that was originally projected and expected, there is certainly still room for additional growth and that should attract more investors who are looking to the pursuit of impact strategies.

It can be interesting to keep in mind that three of the Impact SBICs had not yet placed their capital by January of 2015. Other three funds have managed to buy 33 different companies country wide and possess employed an absolute in excess of 4,600 people. These organizations which attracted investments include a Michigan wood wast to pellet manufacturer, a Texas poultry company as well as a Puerto Rican educational institution inside a low income urban area.

The name from the fund was changed for the Impact Investment Fund from your Impact Investment Initiative, that is a simple, but a very meaningful change, because it more aptly describes the fund and so that it is a lasting feature. The strategy of the fund relies around the application of rapidly evolving strategies which uses the mix of financial gains together with social gains and returns in investment gaps in narrow niches.

Moreover your time and money options from within the different funds themselves are already in a position to utilize more individualized strategies including:

– Taking off the $200 million cap having the ability to offer Impact SBICs with additional and leverage.

– Removing the waiting period when it comes to the utilization of leverage commitments in various areas.

– The capability to allow SBICs to opt-straight into this fund family, when the Impact Fund requirements are satisfied.

Among the factors which includes helped the development of your SBA Impact Investment Fund is the ability to adopt standards and strategies in the social impact area inside the measurement of such factors.