Newly Formed Economic Opportunity Coalition Announces New Initiatives to Drive Economic Opportunity in Underserved Communities

October 4, 2022 (Arlington, VA and San Diego, CA) – The Economic Opportunity Coalition (EOC), of which Momentus Capital is a member, is investing in new initiatives as part of its continued effort to address economic disparities and accelerate economic opportunity in underserved communities.

Momentus Capital is honored to serve as one of the founding members of the EOC, which is made up of 28 companies and foundations, including 18 companies ranked in the Fortune 500. Their goal is to focus commitments in a few areas that will move the needle — aligning their major investments in communities of color with investments made by the Biden-Harris Administration.

These new initiatives, in coordination with the Freedman’s Bank Forum, include:

Investing in Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) and Minority Depository Institutions (MDIs)

1. Launching a planning committee to explore the creation of a Community Equity Development Bank (CEDB) to expand financial services to low-to-moderate income (LMI) communities

• The CEDB would be a special purpose wholesale financial corporation that would increase the scale and breadth of financing for low-wealth communities by serving as a “clearinghouse” to channel financial resources to MDIs and CDFIs.
• The CEDB would offer a range of financial and technical services that would help expand the reach, capacity, and liquidity of MDIs, CDFIs and other organizations.
• The planning committee, which includes members from Bank of America, Citi, Ford Foundation, Google, Goldman Sachs, Intercontinental Exchange, Kresge, Next Street, The Rockefeller Foundation, Vista Equity Partners, with the input from more than 15 MDIs and CDFIs, has published a white paper outlining the CEDB concept in more detail and plans to continue driving the concept forward.

2. Create a shared platform to connect private sector resources for scalable capacity-building assistance to the more than 1,000 branches of CDFIs and MDIs who serve over 1 million people in LMI communities each year

• Google, Citi, BNY Mellon, KeyBank, Mastercard, Moody’s, PayPal, and Upstart will pilot a shared platform to connect corporate volunteers and resources with CDFI/MDIs.
• The platform will match the needs of CDFIs and MDIs of all sizes to the technology, data, professional expertise, and capabilities of the EOC members who can  provide both off- the-shelf resources and volunteer experts. With greater access to technical resources, CDFIs and MDIs will be able to deepen their impact in the communities they serve.

3. Fuel low-cost capital by moving $1 billion in deposits to MDIs. EOC members have committed to moving $1 billion in deposits to MDIs to increase access to affordable capital in communities of color.

• As an initial commitment to this initiative, EOC members, including Bank of America, Intercontinental Exchange, KeyBank, Moody’s, Next Street, PayPal, and Wells Fargo, have already committed more than $550 million. These deposits will support the Biden-Harris Administration’s $9 billion ECIP program, which provides low-cost capital to MDIs and can be leveraged 8:1 with private sector deposits.

Supporting Entrepreneurship and Minority-owned Businesses

4. Connecting 5 million small businesses with capital and technical assistance

• Mastercard is expanding its global small business initiative and launching Strive USA, which will support five million American small businesses over the next five years. With a particular focus on business owners who have been underserved, Strive USA will help small businesses get capital, go digital, and grow networks and know-how, all with the aim of empowering small businesses as drivers of inclusive growth. Strive USA builds on Mastercard’s nationwide work with small businesses and will begin with targeted initiatives in Atlanta, Birmingham, New Orleans, New York City, and St. Louis. Momentus Capital is among the grant recipients.
• As part of Strive USA, Mastercard is partnering with Next Street and the City of New York to pilot a one-stop digital concierge linking business owners to responsible financing options, culturally competent advisors, practical and actionable content, and a community of representative local business owners. The pilot will be rolled out in conjunction with the launch of the $10 billion State Small Business Credit Initiative and will build the capacity of community organizations to connect small businesses with the right resources at the right time to start, run, and grow their businesses.
• The partnership will build on Mayor Eric Adams’ initiative to launch a one-stop-shop Business Portal.

Improving financial health and inclusion

5. Exploring pathways to not report missed payments in federal disaster areas to limit negative and lasting impact on credit scores

• The EOC will convene with the National Economic Council, the Department of Treasury, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and other industry stakeholders, data scientists, advocates, and agencies to better understand how financial institutions could pause reporting on missed payments for customers that are in federally declared natural disaster areas.

Investing in community infrastructure to support wealth creation

6. Google and Micron are partnering to make in-demand tech jobs accessible to more people

• Micron announced plans to invest $40 billion through the end of the decade to build leading-edge memory manufacturing in multiple phases in the U.S. Micron expects this planned investment to ultimately create tens of thousands of new American jobs
  • Through the Economic Opportunity Coalition, Micron will use the Google Career Certificates program to create new job opportunities in the growing semiconductor industry. The certificates prepare people for careers in high-growth fields with no degree or experience required.
  • Micron and Google’s collaboration will expand workforce training opportunities, making learning and career advancement more equitable for all job seekers.

Together, Momentus Capital and the Coalition are committed to bringing these solutions to life and accelerating economic opportunity and inclusion for underserved communities.

About Momentus Capital

Momentus Capital is transforming how capital and investments flow into communities to provide people access to the capital and opportunities they deserve.

Through our family of mission-driven organizations including Capital Impact Partners, CDC Small Business Finance, and Ventures Lending Technologies, we are working to reinvent traditional financial systems that have failed to address systemic issues of inequality, economic empowerment, and the widening racial wealth gap.

Each organization under the Momentus Capital brand will continue operating as a separate entity committed to serving its key market and clients, albeit with additional resources and product offerings.

We offer a continuum of financial, knowledge, and social capital to help local leaders build inclusive and equitable communities and create generational wealth. This includes a comprehensive package of loan products, impact investment opportunities, training and business advising programs, and technology services that advance locally-led solutions.

Leveraging 80 years of combined experience, a portfolio of nearly $3 billion, and strong community engagement, the family of companies has delivered more than $23 billion in financing, created and preserved 250,000 jobs, and served 12,000 small businesses and five million people across their history.

With headquarters in Arlington, Virginia, and San Diego, California, Momentus Capital operates nationally with a focus on larger urban areas and cities in Arizona, Michigan, Nevada, New York, Texas, and Washington, D.C.

Learn more at momentuscap.org.

About the Economic Opportunity Coalition

Announced in July 2022, the newly formed Economic Opportunity Coalition (EOC) is committed to addressing economic disparities and accelerating economic opportunity in underserved communities. The EOC coordinates across organizations to develop and deploy new solutions that address known challenges of financial inclusion.

The EOC is delivering on four significant focus areas: 1) investing billions in community development financial institutions (CDFIs) and minority depository institutions (MDIs), 2) supporting entrepreneurship and minority-owned businesses, 3) expanding inclusive and equitable access to credit and other financial services that contribute to financial health, and 4) Investing in community infrastructure to support wealth creation.

Founding EOC member companies include Ariel Investments, Bank of America, BNY Mellon, Capital One, Citi, Discover, Ford Foundation, Goldman Sachs, Google, Intercontinental Exchange, Key Bank, Kresge Foundation, Mastercard, McDonald’s, McKinsey & Company, Micron, Momentus Capital, Moody’s, Netflix, Next Street, PayPal, PNC, The Rockefeller Foundation, Starbucks, TIAA, Upstart, Vista Equity Partners, and Wells Fargo.