These investments will help companies grow and create impact in their communities, filling a crucial gap in the CDFI space while taking a different approach than traditional venture capital.
NOVEMBER 16, 2022 (Arlington, VA/San Diego, CA) – The Momentus Capital branded family of companies is proud to launch its Impact Investments line of business to jumpstart growth-stage, for-profit businesses that are creating social impact. These investments will focus on companies with diverse leadership and/or are operating in communities of color.
Many of these companies need something other than traditional debt — so that they can instead concentrate their resources on growing their enterprises. However, those opportunities are often not available. For example, less than 1% of venture capital funding nationally goes to Black founders. And equity investments make up less than 2% of CDFI portfolios in the United States.
“As a mission-focused organization, we provide support in a way that helps owners maintain control over their companies. We work alongside these owners to help them grow — seeking a modest, short-term return while enabling owners to maximize their impact within the community through economic growth and job creation,” said Raymond Guthrie, chief investment officer and head of capital deployment for the Momentus Capital branded family of companies, which includes CDC Small Business Finance, Capital Impact Partners, and Ventures Lending Technologies, among other independent companies.
Momentus Capital is proud to announce that it is working with Macy’s, Inc. on S.P.U.R. Pathways: Shared Purpose, Unlimited Reach — a multiyear, multifaceted funding program to advance entrepreneurial growth, close wealth gaps, and shatter systemic barriers faced by diverse-owned and underrepresented businesses.
This innovative effort advances a longstanding Macy’s, Inc. commitment to underrepresented businesses and aims to galvanize the retail industry to invest in the next generation of entrepreneurs.
It features a comprehensive range of financing options, from growth equity capital to loans for working capital and commercial real estate. Additionally, this effort will provide a full suite of educational resources, fueling a holistic supplier ecosystem and acting as a catalyst for outsized growth.
The eighth annual Co-op Innovation Awards supported five organizations’ work in California, Illinois, Minnesota, North Carolina, and Washington, D.C.
September 28, 2022 (Arlington, VA) – Five innovative ideas in five cities have received a combined $170,000 in early-stage grant funding from Capital Impact Partners’ 2022 Co-op Innovation Awards, which aim to increase cooperative development in communities of color and communities living with low incomes.
This year’s awards, issued by Capital Impact Partners and National Cooperative Bank, are funding projects such as enabling Cambodian refugees to have permanent affordable housing; keeping a neighborhood safe so that families and businesses can thrive; creating an online marketplace for street food vendors; teaching skilled laborers how to become upholsterers; and helping a housing cooperative move toward sustainable growth.
These worker, housing, and food co-ops are innovating programs or strategies to offer workers, especially workers of color, an alternative to extractive systems.
Developers of color have historically faced significant barriers resulting from generations of structural racism and disinvestment. This investment will go toward Momentus Capital’s efforts to help developers grow their businesses.
SEPTEMBER 13, 2022 (Arlington, VA/San Diego, CA) –Momentus Capital announced today that U.S. Bank has purchased a $5 million Racial Equity Bond from Capital Impact Partners, part of the Momentus Capital family of companies. It is the first time that Capital Impact Partners has offered a bond like this; the use of funds is restricted to ensure investors’ funds go to developers of color and the work is achieving its intended racial equity impact.
This investment will help support Momentus Capital’s continued work toward helping real estate developers of color in an industry where they are starkly underrepresented to create generational wealth, construct developments that are aligned with community needs, and build more affordable housing.
The list, announced today, recognizes individuals making a cultural impact via bold achievements that have never been accomplished before in their chosen fields, from entertainment to healthcare to food. Fast Company editors and writers research candidates for the list throughout the year, scouting every business sector, including technology, medicine, engineering, marketing, entertainment, design, and social good, to find those who are leading with creativity during one of the most challenging times in history.
August 2, 2022 (Arlington, VA) – Capital Impact Partners announced today that Aflac Incorporated has publicly announced a $15 million investment in Capital Impact Investment Notes (“Notes”).
“As a compassionate company that is innately driven by our commitment to the policyholders and communities we serve, we are continually seeking investment opportunities that champion underserved communities,” said Teresa McTague, Chief Investment Officer of Aflac U.S. and Aflac Global Investments’ Global Head of ESG Investment Strategies. “The opportunity presented by Capital Impact Partners aligned very well with the Socioeconomic Advancement and Empowerment category under our Sustainability Bond Framework. We were thrilled to identify and act upon this caliber of investment opportunity through Capital Impact Partners. Our investment and partnership is far more than transactional to us; it embodies our vision of making a direct and measurable difference in the lives of many, which exemplifies core values our company treasures.”
“We are thrilled to join in celebrating Aflac Incorporated’s commitment toward our mission,” said Raymond Guthrie, Head of Capital Deployment for Capital Impact Partners. “We’ve shown over the past 40 years just how effective impact investing can be. We’re able to deliver a strong financial performance while fulfilling our mission of creating social and economic justice in disinvested communities throughout the United States.”
The Momentus Capital family of companies is a founding member of the new coalition dedicated to addressing economic disparities and accelerating economic opportunities.
July 28, 2022 (Arlington, VA and San Diego, CA) – Momentus Capital is honored to serve as one of the founding members of newly created Economic Opportunity Coalition (EOC).
Vice President Kamala Harris announced today historic efforts to catalyze and align both public and private investments — including formation of the new EOC — to address economic disparities and accelerate economic opportunity in communities of color and other underserved communities.
The EOC is made up of 23 companies and foundations, including 14 companies ranked in the Fortune 500. Their goal is to focus commitments in a few areas that will move the needle — aligning their major investments in communities of color with investments made by the Biden-Harris Administration.
“Momentus Capital is uniquely positioned to serve a significant role representing mission-driven financial institutions on the Economic Opportunity Coalition,” said Ellis Carr, president and CEO of the Momentus Capital family of companies, which includes Capital Impact Partners, CDC Small Business Finance, and Ventures Lending Technologies. “Our team has extensive experience with small business and community development, and the ability to offer a continuum of capital at every growth stage to support economic mobility and wealth creation.”
Capital Impact Partners, CDC Small Business Finance, and Ventures Lending Technologies bring more than 80 years of combined small business and community development experience to the Momentus Capital family of organizations.
JULY 21, 2022 (Arlington, VA/San Diego, CA) – The financial sector can play a greater role in helping build inclusive and equitable communities — by providing people with access to the capital and opportunities they deserve. Opening up these doors is fundamental for local leaders and entrepreneurs to contribute not only to their communities, but to our shared economy.
For too long, many people — especially people of color — have been overlooked, ignored, or systematically excluded from the current system. Residents from all walks of life deserve to have equitable access to the things that contribute to their health and wealth: a vibrant local economy with good jobs; high-quality social services; and a voice in what happens in their community.
“Small business owners, developers, and other local leaders are the engines of job creation and economic activity in communities across the country. When these leaders have the opportunity to succeed, their communities, their residents — and our country — thrive,” said Ellis Carr, president and CEO of Momentus Capital. “We need bold thinking and a holistic approach to unleash solutions for underestimated communities. Momentus Capital was created to meet that challenge.”
Capital Impact Partners joins forces with LIIF and Reinvestment Fund for a program sponsored by the Wells Fargo Foundation in support of real estate developers of color and creating more affordable housing
June 29, 2022 (Arlington, VA) – Capital Impact Partners is partnering with Low Income Investment Fund (LIIF) and Reinvestment Fund to expand its commitment to helping real estate developers of color grow their businesses in an industry where they have long been underrepresented.
Through a $30 million grant from the Wells Fargo Foundation, the three mission-driven Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) will implement Growing Diverse Housing Developers, a new program that will connect housing developers of color with lower-cost, flexible capital, as well as the training, mentorship, and resources needed to grow and scale their businesses. Growing Diverse Housing Developers also seeks to increase the supply of homes that are affordable in several key regions across the country.
The first publicly available, searchable resource of impact investing fund managers zeroes in on some of the industry’s most impactful managers.
May 18, 2022 (Arlington, VA) – For the fifth straight year, Capital Impact Partners has been selected for the ImpactAssets 50 – a free, annual database for impact investors, family offices, corporate and family foundations, and institutional investors that features a diversified listing of private capital fund managers delivering social and environmental impact as well as financial returns.
Capital Impact, a leading mission-driven Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), began offering its Capital Impact Investment Notes in 2017. The Investment Notes allow retail and institutional investors the opportunity to invest in the organization’s nationwide efforts to create social impact for disinvested communities.
