NEW ORLEANS - New Orleans-based, Liberty Bank and Trust Company announced that it is teaming up with the U.S. Black Chambers, Inc. and the Small Business Administration to guarantee loans for blackowned businesses.
SBA and the U.S. Black Chambers plan to back as much as 50% of some business loans provided by Liberty Bank in an attempt to remedy one of the most widely voiced complaints from black business owners-that they can't get adequate capital for their enterprises when they need it.
"Most lenders have a box, and the access to it is so high that many businesses are unable to reach it and are left out, specifically African-American businesses," said Ann Duplessis, Senior Vice President of Liberty Bank. "This allows us to be flexible. We [can] mitigate that disadvantage."
Business owners that are interested in applying must be a member of their local black chamber of commerce. In New Orleans, it is the New Orleans Regional Black Chamber of Commerce. Loans can range from $5,000 to $100,000 and can be used for working capital, equipment financing, business debt refinance, and leasehold improvements.
"Access to capital continues to be the most important factor limiting the establishment, expansion and growth of black-owned businesses," says Alden J. McDonald, President and CEO of Liberty Bank and Trust Co. "These businesses continue to be the engine of employment and economic development and we are proud to be able to provide a means to sustain them within our communities."
This program will be piloted in 11 cities; Atlanta, GA, Oakland, CA, New Orleans, LA, Dallas, TX, Las Vegas, NV, Washington D.C., Chicago, IL, Pheonix, AR, St. Louis, MO and Beaufort, SC.
For more information please call Ann Duplessis at Liberty Bank and Trust at 504-240-5182, or email aduplessis@libertybank.net.
About Liberty Bank and Trust:
Liberty Bank, headquartered in New Orleans, LA, was founded in 1972. Liberty has grown from an initial asset base of two million dollars ($2 million) to more than six hundred fifty million dollars ($650 million). Liberty Bank is among the top 3 largest African-American owned financial institutions with an eight (8) state footprint in the United States.
This article was originally posted on The New Orleans Agenda on June 15, 2017