Capital Landscape

There is a broad ecosystem of stakeholders who need to be involved in advancing this space of innovative finance. This playbook explores strategies to leverage a continuum of capital in support of a continuum of enterprises, taking advantage of the volume of the private investment capital available and the potential for new federal policies, products, and incentives. Below, we explore the role of the various stakeholders, the current capital landscape for small business and how to understand your local capital landscape.

Ecosystem of Stakeholders

Alternative capital solutions for entrepreneurs play a crucial role in the broad recovery efforts needed to rebuild and grow the US small business economy. While the most visible stakeholders in this arena might simply be entrepreneurs and their direct funders, there are several other crucial stakeholder groups in the broader ecosystem, without whom efforts to modernize and redesign the small business capital landscape cannot succeed. 

Current Capital Access for Small Businesses

According to research conducted by the Kauffman Foundation, 83% of US small businesses don’t access any form of outside capital at all for their business. Clearly, our systems for financing small businesses and startup companies are not sufficiently serving the needs of American entrepreneurs and there is a need for alternatives to the status quo.

Understanding your Local Capital Landscape 

Before developing and deploying new innovative financial products, funders and investors first need a deep understanding of their community’s capital landscape and capital gaps. We’ve developed a high-level guide for understanding the capital landscape in your own community.