This Black History Month, CAMEO Network is celebrating by shining a spotlight on one of our members – a Black-led CDFI that has been working to support under-resourced small businesses in its community since 2019.
First Community Capital (FCC) is a mission-driven, nonprofit CDFI created to address the financial barriers faced by small businesses in Southern California. Inspired by the principles of Muhammad Yunus and microfinance, FCC was established to provide affordable capital, technical assistance, and business support to underserved entrepreneurs.
FCC provides accessible, responsible, and community-focused lending to entrepreneurs and low-and moderate-income small business owners who have difficulties accessing traditional capital.
Not long after its founding, First Community Capital enrolled in CAMEO Network’s CDFI Essentials course, which supported the organization in achieving its CDFI certification and obtaining a California Lenders License. In 2022, CAMEO Network provided funding for FCC to be able to expand its lending capacity. The organization went from making five loans in its first year to 180, totaling $2,000,000 since its inception. These loans range from $2,500 microloans to $25,000 small business loans.
The staff and board of First Community Capital, themselves a representation of the population they serve, are deeply committed to supporting their communities. The organization is known for thinking outside the box and has developed strong bonds in its local neighborhoods, thanks in no small part to its work providing microloans to individuals who have very limited access to traditional financial resources.
Jay Diallo, President and CEO of FCC, deeply believes in the power – and necessity – of a strong entrepreneurial ecosystem. “There’s so much need in our community that one organization alone is not able to serve all their needs. So we need to collaborate with other nonprofits, other advocacy groups,” he explained. “When we don’t have the money to lend out, in terms of $50,000 and above, we connect with other CDFIs or other CDCs that provide much larger loans. That’s the kind of ecosystem that we are building.”
In 2024, CAMEO Network named First Community Capital one of our Entrepreneurial Ecosystem Award winners for its contribution to helping small businesses grow and thrive, building entrepreneurial ecosystems that can become the new paradigm for economic development strategies across the nation.