EIG has long supported communities in Quebec by investing in local microcredit organizations, which provide financing and business support to aspiring entrepreneurs who do not have access to conventional financing.
In fact our very first investment, more than 20 years ago, was a loan to ACEM (Association communautaire d'Emprunt de Montréal) now Microcrédit Montréal, and we have since added two others to our portfolio of loans: Fonds Mauricie (Mauricie | Trois-Rivières) and Fonds communautaire d’accès au micro-crédit (Basses Laurentides | Ste-Thérèse).
With our latest community investment, we've extended our reach beyond the borders of Quebec to Toronto, investing in a similar microcredit organization, ACCESS Community Capital Fund, with a $25,000 loan (3-year term, interest rate 3%).
An interesting aspect of this type of investment is seeing how the organizations have evolved over the years to meet the needs of the communities they serve. Thus, those in urban areas with diverse populations (Microcrédit Montréal and ACCESS CCF), now have well-established programs supporting not only small business but also women entrepreneurs specifically, as well as internationally trained professionals who, as immigrants, have a hard time getting their credentials recognized.
A benefit to EIG of investing in these organizations is a certain degree of security in the knowledge that they have the expertise to evaluate the risks associated with individual business ventures and to provide the support needed to ensure their success.
For an overview of EIG's complete community investment portfolio, check out Community Investment - Current Portfolio on the EIG website (en français : Investissements communautaires - Portefeuille actuel).
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