Joining a 17-state program increasing investment in local communities, Community Fund of North Miami Dade (CFNMD), a subsidiary of the Opa-Locka Community Development Corporation (OLCDC), is partnering with CornerSquare Community Capital to make an even greater impact for small businesses in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties. Through this partnership, CFNMD has increased their lending capacity and will be able to make more loans to the small businesses owners who need them most.
CFNMD is a certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) dedicated to providing access to capital to underserved businesses in Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach counties with a focus on helping communities and entrepreneurs of color thrive. In additional to being a lender, they are partners to the businesses that they service and offer additional layers of support and technical assistance to support growth and help them navigate unforeseen circumstances.
“There are many small businesses in South Florida with great potential for success if they had the right resources and support,” said OLCDC President/CEO Willie Logan. “Partners like CornerSquare Community Capital allow us to provide more loans and technical assistance to the small businesses owned by women and people of color that are usually overlooked by traditional lenders.”
CornerSquare Community Capital is a nonprofit fund launched in 2020 by the NC Rural Center to support the CDFI and Minority Depository Institutions (MDI) industry and increase small business lending. The program does this through a unique strategy with long-term impact by reducing the lender’s risk and increasing their available capital through the purchase of (a subordinate position of) up to 25% of eligible loans. Made possible by a partnership with Truist, CornerSquare operates as a network in 17 states, and has a demonstrated track record of serving and supporting the success of small businesses with a particular focus on those owned by women and people of color as well as businesses located in low-income census tracts.
“This partnership will not only expand CornerSquare’s presence in Florida with a second CDFI partner, but it will give our program the opportunity to provide both capital and capacity building support to a Black-led CDFI,” said Armeer Ketchen, Executive Director of the Small Business Credit Initiative and CornerSquare Community Capital. “The opportunity that Black-led CDFIs have to make a real difference because of lived experience, connection to the community, and historical perspective is significant, and it’s important for our program to support that work.”
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About the Opa-locka Community Development Corporation
The Opa-locka Community Development Corporation (OLCDC) was established in 1980 as a nonprofit community development corporation in order to address the distressed unemployment conditions, particularly in the Opa-locka and North Dade County, Florida, communities. Its mission is to build a strong ecosystem that supports under-resourced communities in creating an equitable and sustainable economy. For more information about OLCDC, please visit www.olcdc.org.
About the Community Fund of North Miami Dade
Established in January 2002, The Community Fund of North Miami (CFNMD) is a certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), providing small businesses and entrepreneurs in Miami-Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach counties within South Florida, with the support and resources they need through technical assistance, one on one counseling, and small business loans. As a subsidiary of the Opa-locka Community Development Corporation, the CFNMD’s mission is to utilize resources derived from the public and private sectors to assist the poor, distressed and underprivileged through a program of lending and investing in housing, real estate development projects, small/micro businesses and other commercial enterprises. For more information, visit the CFNMD online at www.cfnmd.org.
Media Contact for CornerSquare Community Capital:
Meg Farrell Buckingham
Director of Communications, NC Rural Center
919.602.4324 (c) | mbuckingham@ncruralcenter.org
Media Contact for Opa-locka Community Development Corporation and Community Fund of North Miami Dade:
Elizabeth C. Burrows
External Affairs Director, Opa-locka Community Development Corporation
305.687.3545 x229 (o) | elizabeth@olcdc.org