Vancity partners with the Government of Canada on the country’s first-ever Black Entrepreneurship Program

Today, Vancity partnered with the Government of Canada to launch the country’s first-ever Black Entrepreneurship Program.

Vancity, along with seven other Canadian financial institutions, have collectively committed up to $128 million in lending capital for the program’s new Black Entrepreneurship Loan Fund – through which Black-led business organizations will provide loans between $25,000 and $250,000 to Black business owners and entrepreneurs to support their growth and success in the years to come.

Quote from Christine Bergeron, Vancity’s Interim President and Chief Executive Officer:

“The road to becoming an entrepreneur has historically been unequal. Black entrepreneurs often face challenges and barriers when it comes to access to capital, financing and support for starting and running a business.”

“The Black Entrepreneurship Program aims to address the inequities that currently exist in our business finance ecosystem. Vancity has always used the tools of finance to broaden economic inclusion and by participating in this program, we will help contribute to closing the inequality gap by providing support for Black-owned businesses that create jobs and prosperity for our communities. We also hope the program will bring attention to systemic inequities faced by a community that has historically been underfinanced and underserved.”

Further details on the program and the loan fund, including how and where to apply, will be made available by the Government of Canada.

About Vancity

Vancity is a values-based financial co-operative serving the needs of its 570,000 member-owners and their communities, with offices and more than 50 branches located in Metro Vancouver, the Fraser Valley, Victoria, Squamish and Alert Bay, within the territories of the Coast Salish and Kwakwaka'wakw people. With $35.5 billion in assets plus assets under administration, Vancity is Canada's largest credit union. Vancity uses its assets to help improve the financial well-being of its members while at the same time helping to develop healthy communities that are socially, economically and environmentally sustainable.