The California Small Business COVID-19 Relief Grant Program provides grants ranging from $5,000 to $25,000. Lendistry has been designated by the State to act as the intermediary for the Program to disburse the grant funds.
“As an organization dedicated to efficiently providing capital to underserved small businesses, and with a deeply experienced senior management team that mirrors the diversity of our home state of California, Lendistry is proud to partner with the CalOSBA in this bold and critical effort,” said Everett K. Sands, Lendistry’s founder and CEO. “Since the start of the COVID-19 pandemic Lendistry has assisted 20,000 small businesses in a dozen states and deployed nearly a half-billion dollars in capital, and we are bringing the full force of our technology, expertise and relationships with partner CDFIs and community organizations to bear on CalOSBA’s landmark commitment to California’s small businesses.”
The Program will prioritize distribution based on priority key factors, including the following:
- Geographic distribution based on COVID-19 health and safety restrictions following California’s Blueprint for a Safer Economy, county status and the new Regional Stay-at-Home Order which can be found at https://covid19.ca.gov/safer-economy/
- Industry sectors most impacted by the pandemic
- Underserved small business groups served by the State supported network of small business centers (i.e., businesses majority owned and run on a daily basis by women, minorities/persons of color, veterans and businesses located in low-to-moderate income and rural communities)
About CalOSBA
The Office of the Small Business Advocate (CalOSBA) helps support economic growth and innovation by working to ensure that California’s small businesses and entrepreneurs have the information, tools and resources they need to plan, launch, manage and grow their businesses successfully and be resilient. The CalOSBA serves to elevate their voices in state government and to advocate on their behalf to help ensure all aspiring and current small business owners and entrepreneurs are provided with the opportunity to access capital, access markets, and connect to the networks and resources they need to succeed. For more information visit the website.
About Lendistry
Lendistry is a minority-led, technology-enabled CDFI and CDE small business and commercial real estate lender. Lendistry ranks second nationwide in SBA Community Advantage lending, providing responsible financing to small business owners and their underserved communities. Lendistry is a member of the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco, headquartered in a Los Angeles Opportunity Zone with an office also in a Baltimore Opportunity Zone. Lendistry’s nonprofit related entity, The Center for Strategic Economic Studies and Institutional Development, provides technical assistance, educational, and other services to many of Lendistry’s small business customers.
Source: CA. Governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development