Access to Capital by Calfor
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Access to Capital Growing Local Businesses Financing Entrepreneurs Building Strong Economies Developed by the California Financial Opportunities Roundtable Representing finance, impact investing, philanthropy, business, economic development, government and more. August 2012 The California Financial Opportunities Roundtable (CalFOR) is part of a statewide initiative supporting development of regional industry clusters to provide jobs, entrepreneurial opportunities, business growth, public and private sector investment in value-chain infrastructure and sustainable communities throughout California. Working with a wide array of partners, the goals of that project include: x Innovation in Capital Markets and new sources of investment for projects and business growth. x Expansion of regional food systems and associated value chain opportunities. x Growth of biomass utilization, biofuels and renewable energy production. x Development of region-specific industry clusters and related business networks. x Improved Rural-Urban collaboration and related infrastructure deployment. Members of the CalFOR do not endorse any business in this guide and CalFOR is not in the business of providing financial advice – all content is provided for informational purposes only. Any potential investor acting on advice provided in this guidebook does so at their own risk. CalFOR advises all readers of this guidebook to always seek financial advice from a qualified advisor before investing. No information provided in this guide should be considered an inducement to invest in any particular security. Funding provided by a Rural Business Opportunity Grant from USDA Rural Development in partnership with the California Association of Resource Conservation & Development Councils. The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color, national origin, age, disability, and where applicable, sex, marital status, familial status, parental status, religion, sexual orientation, genetic information, political beliefs, reprisal, or because all or a part of an individual’s income is derived from any public assistance program. (Not all prohibited bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require alternative means for communication of program information (braille, large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA’s TARGET Center at (202) 720-2600 (voice and TDD). To file a complaint of discrimination write to USDA, Director, Office of Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue, S.W., Washington, D.C. 20250-9410 or call (800) 795-3272 (voice) or (202) 720-6382 (TDD). USDA is an equal opportunity provider, employer, and lender. FOREWORD Forty-three Town Hall forums held throughout California offered many recommendations on what was needed to create jobs, grow our economy and develop sustainable communities. The report that resulted from those forums (www.rurdev.usda.gov/Reports/CA-JobsReport-Feb10.pdf) has led to much collaboration on various ways to implement solutions; among those was an ambitious proposal by the California Resource Conservation and Development Councils to support several regional industry clusters throughout California. As that project and the other efforts unfolded, there was a growing realization that improved economic development strategies and greater collaboration were not enough – finding ways to improve access to capital was a major roadblock that must be overcome. In December 2011, eighty leaders from financial institutions, economic development organizations and government agencies gathered to explore how to improve access to capital for California’s businesses and industry clusters. As participants dug deeper into the issues, it became clear that many options already exist to access capital but that most businesses, entrepreneurs and their advisors are often unaware of these resources – with that awareness, CalFOR’s efforts shifted away from a policy exercise toward development of this guidebook. This guidebook and its recommendations are not exhaustive or exclusive and, given how fast the field is changing, will undoubtedly need revisions within the next year or so; however, this represents a good start toward a healthy capital ecosystem – one where businesses, communities and people can all thrive. A major effort like this could not have been done without the support of many people, in particular the many very busy people who offered their time and expertise to CalFOR – both Roundtable members and volunteers who reviewed the document as it developed. Special thanks go to the California Association of Resource Conservation and Development Councils and their President, Valerie Klinefelter, for her extraordinary work on this project. Mere words cannot adequately express the appreciation owed to these people for their service to California – please thank them whenever you get a chance! Publishing this guidebook is only the first step; next is to pursue implementation of the recommendations. Moving forward toward that goal, four key points must be kept in mind: x There is no single solution: Our financial toolbox needs many different tools to serve our diverse economy and the capital ecosystem needs innovation, collaboration and focus on optimizing results. x It’s not just about capital: Developing competitive entrepreneurs and well-managed businesses along with adequate infrastructure and regional industry clusters are important to long-term success. x Scale: New intermediaries should be regional to manage risk and keep transaction costs down; however, financial products are needed along the entire continuum from microfinance to large funds. x All stakeholders must be engaged: Buy local and invest local initiatives can support regional economic development as can streamlined regulatory processes and triple-bottom-line approaches – the key is to find balance between competing needs and open opportunities for all to participate. Success requires time, energy, ideas and capital from all Californians in this effort. Please join us! Glenda Humiston State Director, California USDA Rural Development i TABLE OF CONTENTS Foreword i List of Roundtable Participants iv Acknowledgements vi Introduction of Key Issues 1 x Findings and Considerations 2 x Target Regional Industry Clusters 4 x Implement a Statewide Economic Development Strategy 4 x Update Local Economic Development Strategies 5 x Focus on Small Business 5 x Support Micro-Enterprise 6 x Develop Effective Intermediaries 8 x Improve Accessibility of Information 9 Capital Currently Available and Operational 11 x Buy Local 12 x Invest Local 14 x Community Development Financial Institutions 16 x Government, Institutions and Foundations 18 x Small Business Investment Companies 20 x Small Business Lending Fund 21 x Surety Bonds 21 x Tax-Exempt Industrial Development Bond 22 x California Organized Investment Network 23 x State Assistance Fund for Enterprise, Business and Industrial Development Corporation 24 x Revolving Loan Funds 25 x Community Reinvestment Act 26 x Cooperatives 28 x Employee Stock Ownership Plans 30 x Early State Funds: Angel Investors & Venture Capital 32 x Direct Public Offerings 34 x Crowdfunding 36 x Friends and Family Securities 39 x Local Investment Clubs 40 x Lending Circles / Peer Lending 41 x Individual Development Accounts 41 x Sweat Equity 42 x Tax Increment Financing 43 x Self-Directed Individual Retirement Accounts 44 x Export Assistance and Financing 46 Available With Substantial Work 48 x California Community Capital Collaborative 49 x California Specific Community Investment Note 54 x Connecting CDFIs to Socially Responsible Investors (SRI) 55 x Public / Private Financing of Infrastructure 56 x Corporate Investment in Shared Value 58 x EB-5 Visa for Immigrant Investors 60 x Rural Business Investment Companies 62 x Private Equity Investments with Blended ROI 64 x Social Impact Bonds 65 x Community Currency and Time Banks 66 ii Business Mentoring and Technical Assistance 67 x Technical Assistance with Mentoring/Coaching 68 x Collaborative Delivery Models 70 x Building Entrepreneurial Development Systems 72 x Due Diligence Checklist for Entrepreneurs 73 x Specialization-Driven Training Platforms 74 Resources for Technical Assistance and Mentoring 76 Resource for Business Research and Data 80 Resources for Financing 84 Resources for Networking and Advocacy 88 References 97 List of Figures 1: Basic model of capital deployment 1 2: Drivers affecting the economy 3 3: Small business lending environment 5 4: Kauffman FastTrac® survey on would-be entrepreneurs 7 5: Percent of California businesses that are microbusinesses 7 6: Supply versus demand on capital resources 10 7: Multiplier effect of spending in locally owned business 12 8: California residents bring 5% of retirement accounts home 14 9: Map of California cooperatives 29 10: Types of financing at stages of company growth 33 11: Market for business crowd-funding 37 12: Three models for crowdfunding 38 13: California Agricultural Exports 2000 – 2010 47 14: Structural model for California Community Capital Collaborative 51 15: Structural model for California FreshWorks Fund 52 16: Financing structure of the FreshWorks Fund 53 17: Corporate investment in “Shared Value” 58 18: I-526 Receipts, Approvals and Denials FY2005-2012 60 19: Entrepreneurship Rates by Immigrant Status (1996 – 2010) 61 20: Hybrid enterprise development network 64 21: Decision Tree on basic financing options 67 22: Model for Business Technical Service Delivery