Debra Torres, Debra Torres LLC, Miami, FL >
our impact
Entrepreneurs build communities, improving their lives as well as those around them. In fact, small businesses employ 6 out of 10 people and account for 75% of all new jobs created in the US.
Hardworking and innovative, these small business owners are passionate about the services they provide and the neighborhoods they serve, yet one third rely on credit for financing. At Ascendus, we’re committed to empowering these local heroes with the loans and resources they need to compete and thrive.
2019 in numbers
1,007
loans to small
business owners
$15M
dollars in
capital provided
3,200
jobs created
and sustained
In the three decades since our founding, we have lent $200 million to more than 22,000 small businesses nationwide. Read more in our Annual Report.
addressing the need
access to capital
Black and Latinx entrepreneurs have a loan approval rate
of just 29% and 50%, compared to 60% for
white entrepreneurs.
financial cushion
Half of all small businesses hold a cash buffer of less than a month. 94% of businesses in majority Black communities and 89% of businesses in majority Latinx communities have fewer than 14 cash buffer days.
financial health
In April 2020, the financial health of 37% of Black-owned businesses
and 31% of Latinx-owned businesses was found to be “at risk.”
revenue
In 2019, the average annual revenue of women-owned businesses was just half of the average annual revenue of businesses owned by men.