IDEA Fund: SSBCI Eligibility Guidance

State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) Eligibility Guidance

Missouri has received federal funding through the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) Program. MTC has been approved by the Department of Treasury to use a portion of the state’s allocation to fund equity-based investments in the most promising Missouri-based early-stage technology-focused companies, through its IDEA Fund.

The IDEA Fund Application (Section 11) asks a series of questions that will allow MTC to determine if the Applicant Organization is eligible to receive an investment funded through the SSBCI program. An Applicant Organization’s answers to these questions will not make the organization ineligible to receive an investment from MTC, the answers will only affect eligibility for an SSBCI-funded investment.

For additional information on the federal SSBCI program, please visit the Department of Treasury’s dedicated website.

Determining SEDI Eligibility

A portion of the federal funding through the State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) Program is dedicated to providing financial support to socially and economically disadvantaged businesses (SEDI). Treasury determines SEDI eligibility based on the characteristics of a business’s owners or the geographic characteristics of the business.

To assist Applicant Organizations in completing Section 11 of the IDEA Fund Application, MTC is providing the following definitions and resources.

For additional information on SSBCI SEDI eligibility the Department of Treasury’s dedicated website.

  • For an Applicant Organization to be considered owned and controlled by socially and economically disadvantaged individuals as defined by the Department of Treasury, 51% or more of the individuals owning or having control of a business must qualify as a SEDI individual.
  • SEDI individuals are defined as those who have had their access to credit on reasonable terms diminished as compared to others in comparable economic circumstances due to their:
    • Membership of a group that has been subjected to racial or ethnic prejudice or cultural bias within American society;
    • Gender;
    • Veteran status;
    • Limited English proficiency;
    • Physical handicap;
    • Long-term residence in an environment isolated from the mainstream of American society;
    • Membership of a federally or state-recognized Indian Tribe;
    • Long-term residence in a rural community;
    • Residence in a U.S. territory;
    • Residence in a community undergoing economic transitions (including communities impacted by the shift towards a net-zero economy or deindustrialization); or,
    • Membership of another “underserved community” as defined in Executive Order 13985;
  • For an Applicant Organization to be considered owned and controlled by individuals whose residences are in CDFI Investment Areas, 51% or more of the individuals owning or having control of a business must reside within a CDFI Investment Area.
  • To determine if a residence is within a CDFI Investment Area, please use the CDFI Public Viewer.
  • To determine if the Applicant Organization currently operates or upon closing the investment will operate in a CDFI Investment Area, please use the CDFI Public Viewer. MTC will use the address of the Applicant Organization’s current or future corporate headquarters to determine whether or not the Applicant Organization operates or will operate in a CDFI Investment Area.

Contact for Questions
Please email Jack Scatizzi, [email protected]