By Andrés Salinas
Last year was the best year LEDC has had in terms of approved loans and monies disbursed for the benefit of our community. Thanks to the massive effort and strong collaboration that our lending and technical assistance team put forth, we approved 42 loans (20 to women and 22 to men) that total nearly $3.7 million in loans. It’s worth noting that this wouldn’t have been possible without the support and collaboration of our community allies like Drake Bank, First Bank and Trust, Initiative Foundation, the Minnesota Department of Employment and Economic Development (DEED), and the Minneapolis Department of Community Planning and Economic Development (CPED), just to mention a few.
I’m pleased to share that last year LEDC helped three entrepreneurs purchase the buildings where their businesses have been operating during the last few years. We also helped a farmer purchase more land where he’ll produce his own vegetables for market this 2024.
What does 2024 look like?
The outlook this year is encouraging. We currently have a list of prospective clients that represent more than $1.5 million in new requests for financing. At the same time, the lending program’s goal is to tweak our policies so we can launch new credit products, as well as simplifying the application process for our clients. Our team is excited for the arrival of a new tool that will allow us to strengthen our ability to serve Minnesota’s Latino community.
Goals for 2024
One of our main goals for 2024 is to increase our presence in rural areas to promote the purchasing of commercial buildings, as well as farmland for Latino farmers. At the same time, LEDC is working to create new financial products that will support businesses focused on green technologies.
