About Us
Iowa Community Capital (ICC) programs are designed to fill gaps in capital access for multiple segments of underserved low-income individuals who face difficulties in accessing capital from conventional lenders.
In 2023, our Solidarity program served 338 low-income clients using Grameen peer-group lending methods. Solidarity is open to all who qualify. New members must be below 80% of the Area Median Income (AMI). Client gender is 87% female and 13% male while client ethnicity is predominantly Latinx or African American. Our borrowers are currently centered the Des Moines, Ames, and Iowa City metro areas.
ICC’s Able Up loan program provided 64 loans to low-income clients with disabilities, all of whom were below 80% of AMI. These clients used the fund to access assistive technologies, modify or buy a used vehicle to get to work, build door ramps, or make home modifications to optimize their quality of life. Many have no other credit sources and need credit builder loans and credit score monitoring.
Our Opportunity Impact Investment program focuses on underserved entrepreneurs and populations near CDFI-eligible Census tracts who see benefits from expanded employment created by emerging companies with innovations. ICC focuses on startups with climate change mitigations that provide demonstrations of minority inclusion and upward mobility for underserved populations. ICC's approach relies on startup ecosystem networks and showcase events to search and identify emerging companies with climate change mitigation innovations and inclusive management/founder teams. ICC's investment thesis focuses on addressing food insecurity, clean energy, and decarbonization while building opportunities for generational wealth and creating earned income streams for sustaining ICC's microfinance programs in the longer term to benefit underserved populations.
Furthermore, our Program Related Investments have engaged small business technical assistance coaches to work with loan applicants with four metro community black and brown small business entrepreneur networks. These coaches collaborate with local black and brown accelerator programs and work one-on-one with clients to assist in developing their business plans and loan applications, as well as quarterly contact during a loan term with ICC. The coaches have interacted weekly with ICC leaders and loan review staff to develop their program relationships and to discuss progress on client loan applications.
We are Iowans looking to help Iowans access the capital and expertise they need to thrive as entrepreneurs.
(515) 212-0182
