Pennsylvania SSBCI Revolving Loan Fund (SSBCI-RLF)
The Pennsylvania SSBCI Revolving Loan Fund (SSBCI-RLF) is designed to stabilize and strengthen the Commonwealth’s smallest and most financially vulnerable businesses, including those located in rural and economically distressed communities. Administered by the PA CDFI Network in partnership with the Pennsylvania Department of Community and Economic Development (DCED) and eleven mission-driven Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), the program expands access to affordable capital and technical assistance for small businesses that lack traditional financing options.
With the launch of the federal State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) in October 2022, the Network secured a $45 million allocation from DCED to deploy flexible loan capital statewide. This investment significantly expanded Pennsylvania’s capacity to support small businesses navigating recovery, growth, and long-term sustainability.
Across its first two tranches, the Network successfully deployed 100% of allocated SSBCI-RLF capital.
First Tranche Performance
Within its first year of implementation, the Network fully deployed its $13.3 million first-tranche allocation, demonstrating strong coordination across urban, suburban, and rural markets. Loan disbursements reached businesses in counties across the Commonwealth, with the highest concentrations in Philadelphia (33.37%) and Allegheny County (29.17%), alongside meaningful deployment in Dauphin, Lancaster, Lehigh, Fayette, Berks, Mercer, Erie, and additional counties.
Importantly, while larger, established CDFIs deployed significant capital in high-volume markets, the Network’s emerging CDFIs collectively delivered 13% of total first-tranche funding, reflecting strong performance and reach in smaller and rural communities. Member CDFI The Progress Fund was also recognized for fully deploying its first-tranche allocation within the same timeframe.
Second Tranche Performance
Building on the successful deployment of the first tranche, the Network also fully deployed its $15.2 million second tranche SSBCI-RLF allocation, maintaining momentum while expanding geographic reach. In this tranche, lending activity supported 65 loans across 9 counties, reflecting both sustained demand in core economic centers and continued penetration into surrounding and rural markets.
Second tranche disbursements included:
- Allegheny County: 46.15%
- Philadelphia County: 30.77%
- Lancaster County: 10.77%
- Erie County: 4.62%
- Dauphin, Lawrence, Fayette, Berks, and Westmoreland Counties: remaining share
Together, first- and second-tranche results demonstrate the Network’s ability to deploy $28.5 million in SSBCI capital efficiently, responsibly, and at scale, while balancing statewide reach with market demand.
Statewide Partnership
These outcomes reflect the coordinated efforts of the PA CDFI Network and its participating CDFIs, whose collective expertise enables equitable capital deployment across Pennsylvania.
Participating CDFIs include:
- Bridgeway Capital
- Finanta
- Entrepreneur Works
- Enterprise Development Fund
- Impact Loan Fund
- Invest PGH
- JARI Growth Fund
- Neighborhood Progress Fund
- Neighborhood Community Development Fund
- PIDC Community Capital
Together, these partners have demonstrated the Network’s ability to deploy SSBCI capital efficiently, responsibly, and equitably—laying the foundation for continued investment as subsequent tranches advance.
Why SSBCI Matters
Small businesses are the backbone of Pennsylvania’s economy, but many operate on thin margins and lack access to traditional financing. Even strong, viable businesses are often turned away because of factors like limited collateral, high personal debt, or imperfect credit—barriers that reflect long-standing structural inequities rather than business failure.
The State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) exists to address that gap. SSBCI allows lenders to share risk, making it possible to finance businesses that would otherwise be excluded by conventional underwriting standards. Rather than lowering the bar, SSBCI provides flexible tools—such as loan loss reserves and credit enhancements—that help mission-driven lenders say “yes” when a deal makes sense but the numbers alone don’t tell the full story.
In practice, SSBCI helps businesses move from survival to stability. It supports child care providers, manufacturers, nonprofits, and neighborhood businesses that create jobs, circulate dollars locally, and anchor communities. Just as importantly, SSBCI works alongside technical assistance and coaching, ensuring that capital is paired with the guidance businesses need to succeed over the long term.
By expanding access to affordable capital and strengthening the capacity of Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), SSBCI helps build a more inclusive financial system—one where a single “no” doesn’t end the road, and where small businesses across Pennsylvania have a fair chance to grow and thrive.
