We were at the White House to share about our new Indigenous Futures Fund—designed to accelerate the flow of capital to Native entrepreneurs and Tribal enterprises.
Introducing the Indigenous Futures Fund at the White House
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News
What we learned while recruiting for the 2021 Community Finance Fellowship
This year, we opened the fellowship application to candidates nationwide. We received applications from 13 states, Washington, DC, and even one from another country!
Fifty by Fifty Employee Ownership News: Employee Ownership Catalyst Fund Preserves Local Businesses and Jobs
Project Equity and Mission Driven Finance announced on Labor Day the launch of the Employee Ownership Catalyst Fund, an evergreen debt fund that will offer flexible financing to businesses preparing for—or executing—an employee ownership transition. The fund targets businesses across the U.S. with 25 to 100-plus employees, particularly those employing frontline, low-wage workers and workers of color.
Project Equity launches new financing option to help local businesses build for the future
September 2, 2021 [Oakland, CA] —This Labor Day, small businesses have a new resource that could help them rebuild from the pandemic and secure their legacies while providing long-term careers for their employees. Project Equity, a national leader in the movement to...
Opinion: Here’s how we can help middle-income families in San Diego buy homes
How can investors and local business and nonprofit leaders address housing — and in particular attainable homeownership — through public-private partnerships? Our Chief Investment Officer Louie Nguyen looks at various approaches.
WEPOWER launches $1.5 million fund to invest in Black and Latinx entrepreneurs in North St. Louis
Mission Driven Finance is a founding partner of Elevate/Elevar Capital and will continue to support with fund administration.
San Diego Funders Invest $2 Million in Affordable Housing at City Heights Transit Plaza
With a new collaborative investment, the area near Normal Heights and City Heights is one step closer to having more affordable housing. A hundred and ninety affordable housing units are planned for the nearly 20,000-square-foot piece of land next to the City Heights Transit Plaza, at the corner of El Cajon Boulevard and 40th Street.
Announcing some exciting (and bittersweet) team changes
As Mission Driven Finance celebrates its fifth year flowing capital to community, we have seen our company grow and change many times, especially given our focus on being a deliberately developmental organization. This season feels like one of great change even with that mindset, and we want to make sure you learn about the latest team changes at Mission Driven Finance.
Congresswoman Sara Jacobs’ Request for $1 Million in Child Care Funding for San Diego County Included in FY 2022 House Appropriations Bill
The $1 million in federal funding for the Child Care Expansion Fund would be used by the County of San Diego to address the acute shortage of child care by helping small child care businesses expand. Mission Driven Finance, working with the County of San Diego and Congresswoman Jacobs, looks forward to filling the financial gaps and providing the support providers need to expand to care for more children and help more parents get back to work.
Social Impact Investing with David Cooper and Maggie Spicer
In this episode of the Essential Ingredients podcast powered by NextGenChef, host Justine Reichman talks with David Cooper—our senior portfolio advisor and co-founder of the 86 Fund—and fellow co-founder Maggie Spicer about impact investments and charitable capital investments through donor-advised funds (DAFs).
The Freedom100 Fund shows we can treat immigrants with dignity, not detention
Through a combination of impact-first finance, a coalition of dedicated philanthropic and impact investors, and an incredible organization advocating for immigrant dignity, 100 people are now free from immigrant prison.
Apis & Heritage Capital Partners Announces Initial Close of $30 Million to Turn Businesses with Workforces of Color into Employee-Owned Firms
Mission Driven Finance is delighted to support our client-partners at Apis & Heritage on their first fund to build wealth for workers of color through employee ownership.
Our impact investing partnerships with The San Diego Foundation
Mission Driven Finance partners with The San Diego Foundation to empower communities through new models of investing in social change.
Nano PharmaSolutions featured in San Diego Business Journal
The San Diego Business Journal’s Fred Grier recently highlighted Kay Olmstead and Nano PharmaSolutions, Inc., which Realize Impact invested in through the Mission Driven Finance fund based on donor/investor recommendations.
Asian Pacific Islander Businesses of the Year Awards 2021
In honor of Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month, the San Diego Business Journal and Asian Business Association San Diego presented Asian Pacific Islander Businesses of the Year Awards and a panel discussion that included our Chief Investment Officer Louie Nguyen. Congratulations to portfolio company Microtek took home the “Most Innovative” Business of the Year Award.
AIA New York Civil Leadership Program: Zoning and Shared Equity Housing
In this session, Mission Driven Finance CEO David Lynn spoke about potential financing structures for community land trusts and similar affordable housing ventures.
What we learned in our very first Community Finance Fellowship
We are proud to announce that the first cohort of the Community Finance Fellowship—Louise Jordan, Benson Ochira, Andrew Moncada, Essence Rodriguez, and Crystal Sevilla—is graduating.
Why we updated our logo
Reaching a five-year milestone was not only an accomplishment we can be proud of, but also a good time to evaluate how we present ourselves to the world. We wanted to refresh the colors of our logo to better reflect our bold and optimistic approach to finance.
Why invest with a racial or gender equity lens?
We need more individuals thinking and acting in ways that take into account the dynamics of intersectionality—a framework that civil rights activist and lawyer Kimberlé Crenshaw coined—to provide a lens through which you can see where power comes and collides, where it interlocks and intersects.
