DEED Awards Funding to Nonprofit Lenders that Help Emerging Entrepreneurs

St. Paul – The Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED) has awarded grants totaling $3.1 million to 26 nonprofit lending partners across the state that provide business loans through DEED’s Minnesota Emerging Entrepreneur Loan Program (ELP).

ELP supports the growth of businesses owned and operated by people who identify as Black, Indigenous, People of Color (BIPOC), low-income persons, women, veterans and/or persons with disabilities. The program helps ensure that business owners from populations who’ve historically faced barriers to accessing capital are able to get funds to start and grow their business.

“Now more than ever, the Emerging Entrepreneur Loan Program is a great platform to empower the growth of small businesses that might not otherwise have access to capital,” said DEED Commissioner Steve Grove. “Our economic recovery must create jobs in communities hardest hit by the pandemic, and that’s exactly what these entrepreneurs will do.”

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