About Us
Mission, Vision, Strategy & Founding Principles
The Capital Good Fund is a non-profit microlender based in Providence, Rhode Island. Our mission is to create a poverty-free, inclusive green economy through innovative microfinance. We provide loans and technical assistance to individuals unable to access capital through traditional sources. These loans go to entrepreneurs seeking capital for income-generating activities and to immigrants interested in applying for U.S. citizenship. We are also developing a green credit builder loan program.
Board of Directors & Staff
The Capital Good Fund team is dedicated to serving the greater Providence, RI region. Curious to know more about us? Here’s your chance to meet the entire Capital Good Fund team.
FAQ’s
Have questions about The Capital Good Fund? Read on to get answers on how our loans benefit our borrowers, what our loan terms and interest rates are, etc. Feel free to suggest ideas for other questions you’d like answered in this section by emailing us as (JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address). Thanks!
Community Partners
The Capital Good Fund is directly impacted by the vital assistance of our community partners. Each Providence-based organization helps us to learn more about the varying needs of our clients, and create detailed solutions that are grounded within the community. Our partners’ support also facilitates the Fund’s interactions with our client pool, and has allowed us to develop a strong local network.
Future Plans
After the pilot phase, CGF will begin offering additional loan products and services that will better serve the target population, create new revenue streams, attract more borrowers, and enable the Fund to apply for more funding. We know that the demand for small loans and related services—such as financial literacy training and business mentoring—is strong in Providence and surrounding towns and Cities, as well as across the United States. Achieving our mission involves aiming for significant scale and a variety of product and service offerings. Read on to learn about the kinds of products and services we plan on offering, and how we plan to grow from our pilot phase into a significant force for social change in Providence, Rhode Island, New England, and America.
History of CGF
The establishment of The Capital Good Fund resulted directly from discussions with community leaders and organizations, all of whom identified a strong need to connect low and moderate-income individuals with affordable capital and additional support such as financial literacy training. Everything we do is centered on meeting that need and providing superb, professional services to our borrowers.
About Microfinance
Modern microfinance arose as a response to the fact that banks were not extending credit to the poor—and particularly the rural poor—of developing countries, and as a result people were forced to endure the usurious practices of moneylenders. Even in the United States, low and moderate income individuals are effectively shut out of the financial system because of poor or no credit history. Muhammad Yunus, the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize winner who is considered by many to be the father of microfinance, created the Grameen Bank in the early 1980’s as a bank devoted solely to providing small loans at affordable interest rates to the rural poor of Bangladesh.
Resources for Practitioners
Being prepared to overcome challenges that arise when carrying out socially focused work is of paramount importance. Below you will find links to various resources that may help address many of these challenges.
Resources for Borrowers
In addition to capital, CGF is dedicated to connecting our borrowers to a variety of other resources in the communities in which they live. Below is a list of links to resources for our borrowers, applicants and community members in general:
