A Nonprofit Lender Supporting Women- and Minority-Led Businesses Through Education and Mentoring

In a Nutshell: Unfortunately, the for-profit lending industry leaves many would-be entrepreneurs — women, people of color, and those with low incomes — on the sidelines due to low credit scores. Since 1994, the nonprofit Accion Opportunity Fund (AOF) has lent nearly $1 billion to reverse racial and gender inequities and broaden access to business lending. AOF also provides free resources and coaching to help people gain the confidence and skills to strive for success. Our conversation with AOF’s Adriana Eiriz revealed plans to lend another $750 million over the next five years.

Most Americans agree that we deserve a fair shot at achieving our dreams. But when you think about it for a minute, you realize it’s much harder to get anywhere when you start a few notches behind everyone else.

That’s often the case for women, people of color, and low-income Americans looking to realize their potential, contribute to the economy, and create jobs by starting a business.

People in underrepresented groups may struggle to access capital because of a thin credit file or low credit score. They may also lack the confidence to pursue their dreams due to a lack of knowledge and skills or language and cultural barriers.

In other words, they could use some help. But sometimes, banks just can’t give it. You can have all the talent and ambition in the world, but banks and lending institutions will turn you down if they can’t make the numbers work.

That’s why Accion Opportunity Fund (AOF) is so critical. AOF is a mission-driven nonprofit business lender dedicated to overcoming traditional lending’s implicit bias and including the excluded.

Through small business loans that provide working capital and equipment financing, AOF seeks to ensure every American with entrepreneurial aspirations has the tools and resources to overcome racial and gender disparities and build a more inclusive future.

AOF started as the Opportunity Fund in 1994 before joining forces with Accion U.S. Network in 2020. It has deployed over $900 million in capital through more than 31,000 small business loans with a social purpose, including more than $545 million in the last five years.

When we spoke with SVP of Partnerships and Strategic Growth Adriana Eiriz in August 2024, more was on the horizon. AOF had just embarked on an ambitious goal to lend $750 million to 15,000 small business owners over the next five years.

“We want to become the first scalable and financially sustainable mission-driven nonprofit lender for underinvested small businesses in the United States,” Eiriz said. “We’re going after that North Star.”

We don’t mean to portray for-profit lending in a bad light. Small businesses are essential to American prosperity, and tight lending oversight is necessary in a multitrillion-dollar economy.

But one of the biggest ironies in financial services is that people who’ve already had success receive more and better financial opportunities than those who still need to prove themselves.

Almost naturally, it seems, capital flows more easily to those with successful track records than to those with a blank slate of accomplishments.

AOF fixes that through loans that look beyond credit scores at the business’s potential. You’re eligible if you’re 18 and own at least 20% of a company that has operated at least a year and generates at least $50,000 in annual revenue.

Flexible interest rates start at 8.49%. AOF loans begin at $5,000 with transparent terms and no prepayment penalty.

After a quick online application, prospective clients can expect a quote with no credit check required. Applicants review offers with different term lengths and interest rates to determine what best suits them.

As a federally certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI), AOF offers affordable loans with competitive interest rates in 45 states and works with brokers across eight states to provide trucking and mobile food truck financing.

“We’ve become a digital-first CDFI to expand and reach as many small businesses across the nation as possible,” Eiriz said. “We also recognize that technology can be intimidating for some, so we have a customer-care team laser-focused on supporting businesses during the process and beyond.”

The interest small businesses pay for their loans helps fund additional loans to other businesses instead of contributing to profits.

AOF will lend to any small business meeting the criteria. AOF research shows the businesses it supports have a 96% survival rate compared to the national small business survival rate of 50%.

“As we seek to support economically challenged communities across the country, we see that over 80% of our clients are low-income women or people of color,” Eiriz said. “The biggest difference between banks and nonprofit organizations like Accion Opportunity Fund is we look at business financials and creditworthiness with a different lens.”

Not everyone who reaches out to AOF is ready for a loan. Many entrepreneurs learn by doing, but that only gets you so far when you’re navigating the financial marketplace.

That’s why AOF goes to great lengths to provide an extensive business resource library with over 400 pieces of free content. Anyone can access the library to read and view articles, videos, and webinars and participate in simple, interactive learning courses that teach business fundamentals in a few minutes.

“Small business owners need to learn as much as they can to become loan-ready,” Eiriz said. “We believe in educating our entrepreneurs so that when they’re prepared, we can step in with support.”

A lack of professional connections is a major entrepreneurial challenge for the marginalized and underbanked groups AOF serves. AOF clients and prospects also need individualized attention because every business faces a unique path to success.

That’s why AOF offers free one-on-one coaching and cohort-based learning in English and Spanish to help entrepreneurs start and grow their businesses nationwide. A bilingual customer care team is available by chat, phone, or email Monday through Friday from 8 am to 8 pm and Saturday between 9 am and noon, for those who want live support during their application journey.

Almost 9 out of 10 (89%) of those accessing AOF’s business advising and education programs in fiscal year 2023 were entrepreneurs of color, and 68% were women. In AOF’s fiscal year 2024 , 73% of their loans deployed went to entrepreneurs who identified as low-income. The process is extremely simple: Entrepreneurs contact AOF through the website and schedule a 30-minute introductory session.

The team takes it from there, teaching the advantages of a high credit score and working individually with business owners to build their credit. AOF entrepreneurs also learn the best methods to obtain capital, create a go-to-market strategy, and improve their financial management and bookkeeping practices.

The initiative began before the COVID-19 pandemic and started small.

“We realized the demand was huge,” Eiriz said. “Our broad network of trusted professional business coaches provides expert advice to entrepreneurs across the United States.”

AOF is an advocate in addition to a lender and educator. Corporate partnerships yield additional grant opportunities, programs, and coaching for businesses and entrepreneurs.

Brewing the American Dream is AOF’s partnership with the Samuel Adams Brewery. It provides food and beverage entrepreneurs with nationwide access to capital, business coaching, and educational resources.

With FedEx, AOF offers an E-Commerce Learning Lab where so many of their low income small businesses, including many women entrepreneurs and entrepreneurs of color, can learn eCommerce fundamentals. With LegalZoom, it provides grants and services through Fast Break for Small Business.

On the lending side, partnerships with American Express, the LISC Foundation, and many others allow AOF to engage with more small businesses and build awareness of the importance of inclusive business lending.

AOF is a founding member of the Responsible Business Lending Coalition, a public/private alliance of more than a dozen mission-aligned organizations and small business advocates committed to innovation in small business lending.

Through that partnership, it helped create the Small Business Borrowers Bill of Rights, which has influenced the passage of state-based truth-in-lending legislation.

Ninety percent of AOF clients who completed a post-engagement survey in fiscal year 2023 said they felt more prepared to run their business after one-on-one coaching. A total of 91% reported learning something new that they could apply to their business, and 92% said they would recommend AOF coaching services to other small business owners.

Meanwhile, in “Ripple Effect: The Macroeconomic Impact of Small Business Lending,” AOF showed that small businesses it supports generate over $2.05 from tax revenue, spending, and new wages for every dollar it lends.

That makes AOF’s new goal — lending an additional $750 million to 15,000 entrepreneurs — good news for the small business community. Soon, a unified customer portal will integrate data from all of AOF’s programs to provide customers with personalized support, tools, dashboards, and recommendations.

“When you talk to women entrepreneurs, entrepreneurs of color, and so many of our low-income clients, you hear how they want to tap into their talent and leave a legacy,” Eiriz said. “We build a lot of trust in the communities we serve by listening to our small businesses and tailoring our services to meet their needs.”