Novel Program Would Connect Patron Lenders to Local Businesses

To address the hardships that small US businesses are facing during the pandemic, a proposed lending program would match local investors with local businesses. Financial Services Regulatory & Enforcement Lauren Pryor partner writes about the model, which she and her colleagues designed, in a July 8 Bloomberg Law article.

Under the auspices of a government agency or an experienced non-governmental group, the “Community Business Capital” (C2B) program would encourage people who “patronize and appreciate local businesses” to make small investments in “the fabric of their communities,” Lauren says.

It’s a “community-based twist to the peer-to-peer lending model,” Lauren says. “Community-minded investors would be able to direct capital to a particular business participating in the program, or to categories of local businesses, such as restaurants or hardware stores.”

Read Lauren’s article for more details about the program, and see her earlier post on this blog about the “hackathon” that inspired the idea.

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