$13M available to help CNMI’s small businesses secure loans

Consultant Nancy Montoya, second from right, poses with acting governor Jude U. Hofschneider, CDA executive director Manual Sablan, acting Commerce secretary Mark O. Rabauliman, and other Commerce officials. (Contributed Photo)

Acting governor Jude U. Hofschneider met with senior leaders of the U.S. Department of Commerce, Commonwealth Development Authority, and banking institutions and a consultant who has worked with the U.S. Department of the Treasury to discuss strategies for committing $13 million in CNMI Small Business Guarantee Funds.

The CNMI, through the Department of Commerce, was allocated $13.2 million from the U.S. Department of the Treasury in March 2012.  To date, the program has helped five local businesses create eight jobs but much of the local opportunity for participation remains untapped.

“The SSBCI Program has the potential to retain the full $13.2 million in funding that can be used in perpetuity to support CNMI’s businesses,” said Nancy Montoya, the consultant who has worked on developing and promoting the program in the U.S. with the Department of the Treasury and other regulators. “The beauty of these funds is that they have been designed to fill lending gaps where other programs can’t—mainly for otherwise creditworthy businesses that have shortfalls in collateral or cash flow in the initial stages of start-up or expansion.”

The SSBCI program has several unique features, including the ability to guarantee loans to non-U.S. citizens and design deferred loan payments that enable the borrower to service bank loans while building cash flow for future full payments.

“We believe that there are worthy businesses here that should take advantage of these guarantees if they were aware of them,” said Hofschneider.

He pointed out that many of the economic development projects underway in the CNMI involve businesses that could qualify, such as subcontractors for public works or those engaged in the targeted development areas of agriculture and aquaculture. Retail businesses and small contractors are also excellent candidates for the program.

The U.S. Small Business Administration’s 2012 Small Business Profile of the CNMI estimates that 45 percent of all business establishments employ less than 20 employees and 27 percent employ less than 100 employees. With job creation as one of the primary goals of the SSBCI programs, these businesses are ideally poised to use these guarantees to expand their businesses.

CDA executive director Manual Sablan said the SSBCI program has strong support from a few local banks but that there is plenty of opportunity to increase bank participation in the program.

“Even if a bank is not able to make the loan they could refer the loan to our local Small Business Development Center, who can then review the request to see if another bank would be a better fit. This way the bank gets to keep the deposit and service business from the customer while still helping to provide access to capital. It’s a win-win for everyone when these guarantees work,” Sablan said.

Acting Commerce secretary Mark O. Rabauliman adds: “This is a great opportunity for our local entrepreneurs to apply for capital for start-ups, buy-outs, or business expansion. I encourage them to take this opportunity.”

The group will explore how their agencies might collectively identify businesses that could benefit from these guarantees as well as encourage greater bank participation in the program.

Other efforts include the CDA’s Small Business Expo, which will be held at the Hyatt Regency Saipan’s Sandcastle Theatre on Oct. 25, 2014, from 9am to 12pm.  Businesses who would like to learn more about the SSBCI and other loans and services are encouraged to attend. (PR)