Lendistry Recognized for Providing $23.3 Million to 15 Marginalized Businesses With Small Business Loan Fund

LOS ANGELES, June 11, 2024 (Newswire.com) - Lendistry announces today that it has received the Qualified Low-Income Community Investment (QLICI) of the Year Award from Novogradac in the Small Business category. Specifically, the lender won the award for its NMTC Loan Fund I (“Small Business Loan Fund” or “SBLF”), an unorthodox fund capitalized by Lendistry capital and NMTC equity. Totaling $23.3 million, these below-market-rate loans created over 300 living wage jobs. The fintech won its first award in the Metro category alongside its fellow investors for the Destination Crenshaw project in 2022. 

While community development entities typically use their NMTC allocations to support one-to-three large-scale real estate and development projects, the SBLF is a unique entity that funded fifteen small business loans, impacting marginalized communities across the country. Funded businesses included a women- and minority-owned accounting firm in New York providing tax services, small business, immigration, and incorporation consultations, and a minority-led nonprofit makerspace in Chicago supporting over 75 artists, makers, and creators.

Akin, Co., a women-owned general contracting firm in Los Angeles focused on projects located in low-income communities, with a training and employment initiative for previously incarcerated individuals and an initiative to train more BIPOC women in construction trades, was also a notable recipient. 

“We are incredibly honored to have received this loan award. This funding enables us to continue our mission of championing community-centered spaces. We aim to ignite inspiration and motivation in the upcoming generation of construction professionals as well as the neighborhoods we both live and work. This investment will serve as catalyst to not only our business growth, but also make a substantial impact on the City of Los Angeles. We extend a heartfelt thanks to the Lendistry team who believed in our vision and continues to support our journey.” 

Nicole Boone, Lendistry VP of Capital Markets, accepted the award on June 6 at Novogradac’s 2024 Spring New Markets Tax Credits Conference in Washington, DC. “New Markets Tax Credits have great potential for impacting small businesses, which are a key component to generating community wealth but rarely benefit from NMTC allocations because they need loans under $5 million to grow,” says Boone. “These fifteen businesses are just the beginning, as Lendistry intends to recycle these small loans to increase impact of the NMTC subsidy to at least 100 businesses in critical need of capital.” 

About Lendistry

B.S.D. Capital, Inc. dba Lendistry (lendistry.com) is a minority-led fintech that provides innovative lending products and access to grant programs for small businesses nationwide. Headquartered in a Los Angeles Opportunity Zone, Lendistry uses technology and community partnerships to overcome systemic gaps that inhibit access to capital, and to empower its customers with responsible financing options. Based on its reputation for deploying funds efficiently and equitably, Lendistry’s leadership is often called upon to share their expertise with both government and private organizations. Lendistry has both Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and Community Development Entity (CDE) certifications and is a member of the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco. Lendistry SBLC, LLC is an SBA Preferred Lender and the nation’s only African American-led SBA designated Small Business Lending Company. In collaboration with The Center by Lendistry, a nonprofit business education organization, Lendistry dedicates itself to providing economic opportunities and progressive growth for underserved urban and rural small business borrowers and their communities.

Source: Lendistry