100+ Ways to Get Startup Capital Full

OVERVIEW

West Virginia’s startup culture is on the cusp of something big. With recent fast-paced, coordinated and opportunistic action, West Virginia is flipping the script on how it will develop its economic opportunity.

In order to find sustainable pathways for business growth, entrepreneurs must consider what type of capital best suits each stage of business development. This guide offers 100 ways a West Virginia entrepreneur can find the necessary capital to help achieve success.

By leveraging the startup and investment expertise of WV Forward partners, this guide offers a starting point and an at-a-glance overview of capital resources to help West Virginia innovators navigate funding options for their businesses.

By spotting gaps in capital sources and lighting up national trends like social impact investing and opportunity zone funds, WV Forward aims to add value to the state’s startup community.

METHODOLOGY

This guide is not comprehensive and only draws from publicly available information. The capital resources do not include common traditional lenders like banks nor venture capital firms that would generally encourage relocation to their area. Finally, this list focuses only on direct funding sources that would support for-profit entities in West Virginia.

A 2019 version of this toolkit will include entrepreneurial assistance programs located across the state. Additions or edits can be submitted by emailing  wvforward@mail.wvu.edu

CONSIDERING YOUR CAPITAL OPTIONS

For entrepreneurs making initial financing plans for operations, it’s common to consider: “What capital sources are available to support my business venture or product?”

• Grants are an advantageous early form of money, which requires simply time in preparing a good application.
• Equity investors will take an ownership stake in a company in exchange for helping it grow more rapidly.
• Debt options help further finance growth, at a cost, without giving up further ownership.

CAPITAL FOR PRE-REVENUE COMPANIES

These types of companies are early in formation and may not have any sales so far. Not having revenue to report does not indicate current or potential company value, however only certain capital providers are willing to fund a pre-revenue company. Grants and equity investors are the likely capital sources available for this stage of company.

CAPITAL FOR REVENUE-GENERATING COMPANIES

Once a company can show a real revenue stream, additional capital sources open up. Debt becomes a financing option—payments are expected to begin immediately, which is why revenue is generally required. Additional classes of equity investors and grant opportunities open up as traction is shown over time.

Grant Opportunities for West Virginia small businesses

Targeting small businesses

1. West Virginia University Demo Day

   Demo Day offers the opportunity for all WVU students, faculty, staff and members of the community to showcase their innovative ideas, products or ventures and compete in a cash award pitch competition.
   Benefits: Receive up to a $1,000 in grant funding.
   Grant award target characteristics: The business venture or pro duct must show the power of solving problems and embracing ideas to create a new company or investment opportunity that shows signs of business preparedness and market opportunity.
   For more information: Go to Ideahub: Demo Day.
   
   

2. Robert C. Byrd Institute Agriculture Technology and Innovation Student Competition

   West Virginia 7th-12th graders can pitch in a competition that encourages innovation and problem-solving in agriculture and food production fields.
   Benefits: Receive up to $500 in grant funding.
   Grant award target characteristics: Winning ideas relate to agribusiness, plant and animal systems, resources management, power, structural and technical systems, and food products and processing systems.
   For more information: Point of contact: Tina Metzer, Phone: 304-490-9308. 
   
   

3. Robert C. Byrd Institute Early Stage Funding

   RCBI provides a number of funding options for new companies and entrepreneurs.
   Benefits: Receive early-stage grant funding and other in-kind assistance.
   Grant award characteristics: West Virginia companies who need assistance with early working capital needs for prototyping, marketing, and other needs.
   For more information: Go to RCBI: Early Stage Funding.
   

4. Governor’s Guaranteed Workforce Program

   This program answers the call for funding for West Virginia businesses who need help re-training employees who have been displaced by shifts in market forces.
   Benefits: Receive funding to help re-train and up-skill employees to meet your business needs.
   Grant award target characteristics: Must be pre-approved to receive employee training assistance funding.
   For more information: Phone: 304-558-2234 or go to WV Commerce: Training. 
   
   

5. Wheeling Heritage Show of Hands Grant

   A public pitch presentation that occurs three times each year where the fan favorite winner is chosen with audience participation.
   Benefits: Receive between $1,000 - $25,000 in grant funding.
   Grant award target characteristics: For Wheeling, WV, based companies.
   For more information: Go to Wheeling Heritage: Show of Hands.
   
   

6. U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Value Added Producer Grants

   These grants provide working capital to food companies for operating costs like marketing expenses or inventory.
   Benefits: Receive between $75,000 - $250,000 in grant funding.
   Grant award target characteristics: Targeted grantees include independent producers and groups like farmer or rancher co-ops that are producing and marketing value-added agricultural products.
   For more information: Point of contact: Kris Warner, West Virginia State Director Phone: 304-284-4860 or go to USDA: Value Added Producer Grants. 
   
   

7. FedEx’s Small Business Grant

   A grant competition for entrepreneurs with innovative ideas and products.
   Benefits: Receive between $1,000 - $25,000 in grant funding.
   Grant award target characteristics: The grant application is open to for-profit businesses that have been operating for at least six months, with no more than 99 employees. Previous winners include an eco-friendly alternative to plastic water bottles, a saffron/spice provider and a company that produced teddy bears in military uniforms that help children fall asleep.
   For more information: Email Fedex: Grant.
   
   

8. Visa Everywhere Initiative Grants

   This grant is focused on startups relevant to Visa’s business, with a product in market, showing sales and investment traction.
   Benefits: Receive between $1,000 - $50,000 in grant funding.
   Grant award target characteristics: The application seeks startups that can help merchants drive greater loyalty and customer conversion, how startups can help small and medium businesses accept digital payments and other digital solutions, and how startups can augment their products with voice, messaging and AI solutions.
   For more information: Go to Visa: Everywhere Initiative Grant.
   
   

9. LendingTree Grants

   These grants focus on funding solutions to help communities grow and prepare for the future. Benefits Receive between $5,000 - $50,000 grant award range.
   Grant award target characteristics: The application seeks passionate, growth-minded and communitycentric candidates. The most recent winner is an educational company that focuses on STEM and leading K-12 students through hands-on activities to prepare them for the future.
   For more information: Email Affliates at LendingTree  or go to LendingTree.
   
   

10. Chase Mission Main Street Grants

    This grant focuses on small businesses, products and mission oriented ventures.
    Benefits: Receive between $5,000 - $250,000 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics: Past winners include a company that helps veterans find jobs after returning home (focused on the cyber and IT industry), a company that provides technical training to those in the healthcare field, a specialty grocery store and a mountain bike producer.
    For more information Phone: 212-270-6000 or go to Chase: Mission Main Grants.
    
    

11. National Association of the Self-Employed’s Growth Grants

    This grant focuses on the businesses of NASE’s entrepreneurial membership.
    Benefits: Receive between $1,000 - $4,000 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics: Applicants must be National Association f or the Self- Employed members in good standing who demonstrate a business need that can be fulfilled by the grant. The application must show how the grant will improve business growth and long-term success.
    For more information: Email National Association or go to National Associate of the Self-Employed Growth Grants.
    
    

Targeting high-tech companies

12. TransTech Energy Conference Pitch

    Annually held in Cannonsburg, PA, this “new energy ” technology conference holds a pitch competition for tri-state startups.
    Benefits: Receive $30,000 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics: The competition is aimed at research and development firms that are solving emerging problems with transitional energy technology.
    For more information go to Transfer Tech Energy
    
    

13. U.Pitch

    This Chicago-based pitch competition is aimed specifically at current and recent college student entrepreneurs.
    Benefits Receive between $500 - $7,500 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics: Current and aspiring U.S. startup founders can present their unique product ideas and business models via a brief (140 characters or less) description and a 90-second pitch video explaining the idea.
    For more information: go to Future Founders: UPitch
    
    

14. Hello Tomorrow Global Challenge

    This visionary science and technology startup competition is designed specifically to address the needs of deep-tech entrepreneurs across several different industries and technologies.
    Benefits: Receive between $15,000 - $100,000 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics: This grant focuses on companies doing transformative work in the fields of aeronautics, data, AI, digital health, energy, food, agriculture, environment, global health, biotech, industry 4.0, new materials, mobility, space and well-being.
    For more information: go to Hello Tomorrow: Startups
    
    

15. U.S. Small Business Innovation Research Grants (SBIR)

    This grant is meant to help include businesses in the federal government’s research and development community.
    Benefits: Receive between $5,000 - $1,000,000 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics: This grant supports domestic small businesses engaging in federal research and development that has the potential for commercialization.
    For more information: go to Small Business Innovation Research Grants
    
    

16. U.S. Small Business Technology Transfer Grants (STTR)

    STTR encourages technology transfer from research institutions to private companies engaging in high tech commercialization.
    Benefits Receive between $5,000 - $1,000,000 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics: STTR grants are awarded to companies partnering with research institutions to commercialize technology. Both parties must establish an intellectual property agreement detailing the allocation of IP and rights to carry out follow-on research, development or commercialization activities.
    For more information: go to Small Business Technology Transfer Grants
    
    

Targeting women- and veteran-owned businesses

17. SBA’s InnovateHER Challenge

    This grant focuses on having an impact in the lives of women and girls.
    Benefits: Receive between $5,000 - $40,000 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics: The focus is on products and services that have a measurable impact on the lives of women and families, have the potential for commercialization and fill a need in the marketplace.
    For more information: Point of contact: Kathleen McShane, Asst. Administrator  or go to SBA: Innovate Her Challenge  
    
    

18. WomensNet’s Amber Grants

    This grant focuses on passionate and savvy women entrepreneurs.
    Benefits: Receive between $1,000 - $11,000 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics: While business details are vital, this grant focuses on women who believe in what they’re doing.
    For more information: go to Amber Grants 
    
    

19. 19. The Halstead Grant

    This jewelry business focused grant is unique.
    Benefits: Receive between $1,000 - $7,500 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics: Targeting women business owners who make and sell jewelry, each summer Halstead awards a grant to a new jewelry designer working primarily in silver.
    For more information Phone: 800-528-0535 or go to Halstead Grant
    
    

20. Eileen Fischer Foundation’s Women-owned Business Grant

    This grant targets products and solutions for women’s personal transformation.
    Benefits: Receive between $1,000 - $10,000 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics: Particularly interested in programs that encourage self-discovery and personal transformation, help women or girls find their inner strength and trust intuition or address any phase of a woman’s or girl’s life.
    For more information: Phone: 800-445-1603 or go to Eileen Fischer Foundation
    
    

21. Huggies’ MomInspired Grants

    Here’s a grant that focuses on funding ‘mom’preneurs and their business dreams.
    Benefits: Receive between $1,000 - $12,000 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics:Provides business counsel and money to fund women-owned startups and new product innovations.
    
    

22. The McCormick Foundation’s New Media Women Entrepreneurs Grants

    This grant supports women entrepreneurs in the fields of news media and information.
    Benefits: Receive between $1,000 - $14,000 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics: This grant provides seed funding for new women-led news ideas. It seeks to spotlight the creative assets of women to help address issues of opportunity, innovation, recruitment and retention of women in journalism.
    For more information: Point of contact: Jan Schaffer Phone: 202-885-8100 or go to New Media Women 
    
    

23. StreetShares Commander’s Call Veteran Business Award

    Provides a finance products focused on the military and veterans market including small business grants, lines of credit, factoring, and social-impact investing.
    Benefits: Receive between $1,000 - $5,000 in grant funding.
    Grant award target characteristics: This veteran-run and focused funding source based outside of Washington, D.C., offers unique financial products for America’s veterans by capturing the social loyalty that exists within the military community and harnessing that trust to de-risk financial transactions.
    For more information Phone: 800-560-1435 or go to StreetShares
    

Equity Investors for West Virginia Companies

Building a great team with experienced and connected equity investors can be very helpful for a startup venture. Investors who can see a business opportunity and market will add value to a startup team. For their investment of money and time, they get an ownership stake in the company.

Targeting companies in West Virginia 

Targeting companies within a region that includes West Virginia 

Targeting social or environmental impact companies across the U.S. 

78. Impact America

    Invests in billion-dollar market opportunities that use technology to enhance the lives of all Americans.
    Benefits: Receive between $50,000 - $500,000 investments.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Impact America’s mission is to engage recent graduates and college students to address community needs through collaborative efforts to promote change in the communities served.
    For more information: Point of Contact: Channing Kennedy Bethke.  Email Impact America or go to  impactamerica.com.
    

79. Village Capital

    Village Capital invests in companies vetted through their nationwide accelerator network.
    Benefits: Receive between $50,000 - $500,000 investments.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Invest in extraordinary entrepreneurs that traditional venture capital firms often overlook. Focuses on investments in peerselected companies with a social or environmental mission sourced from Village Capital programs.
    For more information: Point of Contact:  Allie Burns.  Email Village Capital or go to  vilcap.com.
    

80. Sustain VC

    Focuses on companies with dedication and commitment to social and environmental impact.
    Benefits: Receive between $500,000 - $5,000,000 investments. Portfolio company characteristics Invests in early-stage, high- growth companies with strong, diverse and passionate management teams. Usually in post proof-of-concept stage with clear market traction, contracts, strategic partnerships, users, etc.
    For more information: Email Justin Desrosiers or go to Sustain VC.
    

81. Bain Capital Double Impact

    Partners with companies that offer products, services or business models that can scale positive social impact. Benefits Receive between $300,000 - $2,000,000 investments. Portfolio company characteristics Focused on self-identified mission-oriented companies as well as more traditional businesses that create positive social impact related to sustainability, health and wellness, and community building. Makes buyout and control investments in lower middle market companies in North America.
    For more information: Point of Contact: Ernesto Anguilla.  Email Bain Capital or go to  baincapital.com.
    

82. InvestEco

    Investing in expansion-stage companies in North America that promote health and sustainability in the food and agricultural sector. Benefits Receive between $500,000 -$2,000,000 investments. Portfolio company characteristics Invests in companies that produce environmentally superior food and agricultural products or services. Typically have between $1 – $30 million in revenues. Goal is to make a strong financial return while supporting companies that are contributing to a healthier world.
    For more information: Point of Contact: Kasia Hulicki Phone: 416-304-1750. Email info@investeco.com or go to investeco.com.
    

83. SJF Ventures

    Provides expertise and networks in the clean tech, s ustainability and tech-enhanced services sectors.
    Benefits: Receive between $1,000,000 - $10,000,000 investments.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Invests in fields including analytical software, mobile healthcare communication platforms, digitalized workflows and minority career outreach programs.
    For more information: Point of Contact: Cody Nystrom. Phone: 917-693-4858 or go to SJF. 
    

84. Arborview Capital Partners

    Makes growth equity and venture capital investments in high growth, mission-oriented companies.
    Benefits: Receive between $3,000,000 - $10,000,000 investments.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Focuses on mission-driven fields such as water conservation, sustainable food production, health and wellness, and energy efficiency. Incorporates environmental, social and governance (ESG) metrics and analytics into investment decisions and portfolio management.
    For more information: Point of Contact: Roger Ballentine Phone: 301-215-8320 Email Arborview Capital or go to  arborviewcapital.com.
    

85. Birchmere Ventures

    Funds innovative companies that make a positive impact while delivering strong returns for investors.
    Benefits: Receive between $1,000,000 - $20,000,000 investments.
    Portfolio company characteristics: With offices in Pittsburgh and San Francisco, Birchmere is focused on technology, financial services and software sectors. Current ventures include e-commerce, smart phone-based teaching tools for STEM students and navigation software.
    For more information: Email Birchmere or go to birchmerevc.com.
    

86. Core Innovation Capital

    Invests in companies that deliver efficient, well-designed financial products that save people time and money, create upward mobility and scale broadly.
    Benefits: Receive between $1,000,000 - $5,000,000 investments.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Looks for technology impr oving transparency, reducing risk and leveling overhead costs.
    For more information:  corevc.com.
    

87. DBL Venture Capital

    Uses a “double bottom line” investment strategy to invest in companies that can deliver top-tier venture capital returns while enabling social, environmental and economic improvement in the regions in which they operate.
    Benefits: Receive between $5,000,000 - $70,000,000 investmen ts.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Accelerates innovation in a way that positively affects an organization’s social impact, as well as its financial success. Focuses on clean tech, information technology, sustainable products and services and healthcare.
    For more information: dblpartners.vc.
    

88. Encourage Capital

    Building a community of investors, foundations, market-leading companies and nonprofits to deploy private capital into systemic solutions to the world’s most pressing challenges.
    Benefits: Receive between $5,000,000 - $20,000,000 investments.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Seeks to change the way investment capital is used to solve critical environmental and social problems.
    For more information: encour agecapital.com.  
    

89. InvestEco

    Focus is on high-growth North American companies that promote health and sustainability in the food and agricultural sector.
    Benefits: Receive between $1,000,000 - $5,000,000 investments. Portfolio company characteristics Focuses on renewable energy, water technologies, resource productivity technologies, efficient transportation solutions, health and sustainability in the food and agriculture sector.
    For more information: investeco.com. 
    

90. SJF Ventures

    A national social impact investment firm focusing on the clean tech, sustainability and technology-enhanced services sectors.
    Benefits: Receive $1,000,000 - $10,000,000 investments.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Focused on analytical software, mobile healthcare communication platforms, digitalized workflows, minority career outreach programs and more.
    For more information: Point of Contact: Cody Nystrom. Phone: 917-693-4858 or go to jfventures.com.
    

91. The Lyme Timber Company

    Private timberland investment manager that focuses on the acquisition and sustainable management of lands with unique conservation values.
    Benefits: Receive equity investment for forestlands or related mitigation and conservation assets.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Current investments include timberlands companies across the U.S.
    For more information: Email Lyme Timber or go to lymetimber.com.
    

92. Better Ventures

    Seeks outsized returns by backing founders on a mission to solve the world’s biggest problems.
    Benefits: Receive between $500,000 - $5,000,000 investments.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Focuses on founders with the intellectual capacity and drive to build truly world-changi ng companies. Invests at the early stage in smart and resilient teams building disruptive technologies in the fields of education technology, gender equality, future of work, access to affordable care, aging and senior care preventative health, clean energy, closed loop systems and wat er analytics.
    For more information: better.vc. 
    

93. North Sky Capital

    Invests in companies that support sustainability and clean technology advances.
    Benefits: Receive equity investments from one in a series of clean-tech funds.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Focused on water, healthcare, renewable energy, corporate efficiency, built environment, energy management and storage, recycling and waste-to-value, transportation, pollution controls, sustainable agriculture and education.
    For more information: Point of Contact: Gretchen Postula Email North Sky or go to the North Sky Capital site.  
    

94. Rethink Education

    Aims to transform the way that people learn by partnering with early and growth-stage ed-tech entrepreneurs.
    Benefits: Receive between $50,000 - $500,000 investments.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Rethink Education finds entrepreneurs creating new ways of teaching, of supporting students, of providing access and meaning to crucial data. Target companies are grounded in rigorous pedagogy with strong business models and proven product-market fit to ensure that they can scale.
    For more information: Point of Contact: Michael Walden. Phone: 914-683-8474. Email Rethink or go to Rethink Education. 
    

95. The Builders

    Helps solve environmental and social problems through the profitable deployment of capital into conscious businesses.
    Benefits: Receive between $50,000 - $500,000 investments.
    Por tfolio company characteristics:  Makes investments around well-researched market themes where platform companies can be built. Focuses on conscious companies building a transformational business, aspirational culture, and an inherently profitable model with the potential to scale.
    For more information: Point of Contact: Tripp Baird Email The Builders or go to The Builders
    

96. Imp act Assets’ Small Enterprise Assis-tance Fund

    Focused on small- and medium-sized bu sinesses in growth stage.
    Benefits: Receive between $100,000 - $1,000,000 investments.
    Po rtfolio company characteristics: Focuses on clean technology, sustainable agriculture and small and medium business development.
    For more information: Point of Contact: Robert Vodicka Email Impact Assets' or go to Impact Assets.   
    

97. TriLinc Global

    Invests in globally diversified opportunities that generate attractive returns as well as create positive social impact.
    Benefits: Receive equity investment to advance social and environmental missions.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Focuses on companies aligned with the UN’s Sustainable Development Goals with ongoing commitment to ESG practices such as energy savings, waste reduction and water conservation or social policies such as fair hiring, compensation, maternity leave, community service and corporate donations.
    For more information: Phone: 310-997-0580 or go to Trilinc.

98. Aqua Spark

    A VC firm focused on marine and aquaculture investment opportunities.
    Benefits: Receive between $250,000 - $5,000,000 investments.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Focuses on companies with a strong and experienced management team that is financially committed to and rewarded by the company’s success. Targets need a strong competitive position as a result of superior technology, innovative products, comparative cost advantage, established market position, significant barriers to entry or dominant distribution in their market.
    For more information: Email: Aqua Spark.
    

99. Atticventures

    Helps digital businesses define their product and growth strategy and build their operations and revenues.
    Benefits: Receive equity investment to advance social and environmental missions.
    Portfolio company characteristics: Current investments include a company that helps museums increase consumer engagement, a company that streamlines the processes of writing TV and a company that acts as a travel guide.
    For more information:  Point of contact: Mark G. Johnson. Email Atticventures or go to the Atticventures site.
    

100. Pilot Mountain Ventures

     Investing in companies that disrupt and create new markets.
     Benefits: Receive equity investment to advance social and environmental missions.
     Portfolio company characteristics: Focuses on scalable businesses with low costs and foreseeable exits. Industry agnostic, but mainly focuses on the technology and medical device sectors. Current investments include a high ankle repair company,a glaucoma treatment company and a company that blocks distractions across all platforms or devices.
     For more information: Point of contact: Steven Perricone. Phone: 212-260-9158 or go to  Pilot Mountain Ventures.
     

Alternative Lenders for West Virginia Companies

The benefit of using debt as a finance tool is that you get to keep the equity of your company, paying interest on a loan instead.

Targeting small businesses

101. CommunityWorks in West Virginia, Inc.

     A community development financial institution that provides a variety of services to homeowners and member organizations.
     Benefits: Receive between $5,000 - $100,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Offers innovative mortgage lending products, technical assistance, training and services.
     For more information: Phone: 304-965-2241 or go to communityworkswv.org.
     

102. Washington County Council on Economic Development

     First Microloan of West Virginia Focused on job-creating women, low-income, minority and veteran-owned businesses.
     Benefits: Receive between $5,000 - $50,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Funds opening or expanding West Virginia businesses, buying inventory, purchasing equipment or supplementing working capital.
     For more information: Point of contact: Tim James, Wheeling Loan Officer Phone: 304-604-3560 Point of Contact: Sam Payne Sr., Charleston Loan Officer. Phone: 304-281-0488 or go to Washington County Council.

103. U.S. Dept. of Agriculture’s Rural Energy for America Program

     Funds operational improvements for agriculture businesses.
     Benefits: Receive $1,500 - $25,000,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Funds may be used for renewable energy systems or improvements such as biomass, geothermal, hydropower, hydrogen, wind generation, s o lar generation and ocean power generation.
     For more information: Point of Contact: Jesse Gandee. Phone: 304-284-4882 or go to USDA. 
     

104. AgFirst Farm Credit Bank

     A nationwide network of 73 customer-owned lending institutions that support rural communities and agriculture with reliable, consistent credit and financial services.
     Benefits: Receive between $50,000 - $1,500,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Focused on rural communities and agriculture businesses as w ell as home buyers.
     For more information: Phone: 800-845-1745 or go to  agfirst.com.
     

105. Natural Capital Investment Fund

     A community development financial institution that lends and provides advisory services to businesses and nonprofits located in underserved rural and urban communities.
     Benefits: Receive between $5,000 - $750,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Specializes in triple-bottom-line West Virginia enterprises that are otherwise difficult to fund.
     For more information: Point of Contact: Marten Jenkins Phone: 304-870-2207. 
     

106. Wyoming County EDA

     Provides capital that small businesses need to start and grow in southern West Virginia.
     Benefits: Receive between $5,000 - $50,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Fills gaps in small business capital needs that are not addressed by other lending institutions. Partners with other lending institutions to maximize the leveraging of loan funds.
     For more information: Phone: 304-732-6707 or go to Wyoming County.
     

107. Woodlands Development Group and Community Lenders

     A community development financial institution serving Barbour, Tucker, and Randolph counties. Benefits Receive between $4,000 - $100,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Focused on housing and community development, downtown redevelopment, community facilities and planning and small business lending.
     For more information: Phone: 304-636-6495 or go to  wdgwv.org.
     

108. The United Federal Credit Union, Morgantown

     A community development financial institution focused on West Virginia business opportunities.
     Benefits: Receive between $25,000 - $100,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Focused on home construction and small business financing.
     For more information: Point of Contact: Vicky Metts, Vice President of Operations Phone: 304-225-1902 or go to  tufcu.org.
     

109. New River Gorge Regional Devel opment Authority

     An alternative finance option focused on Fayette, Raleigh, Nicholas and Summers counties.
     Benefits: Receive between $7,500 - $200,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Serves as an alternative source of financing to those who do not have access to capital through traditional sources.
     For more information: Phone: 304-254-8115 or email New River Gorge Development.
     

110. Center for Rural Health Development

     A community development financial institution focused on healthcare expansion opportunities in West Virginia.
     Benefits: Receive between $50,000 - $200,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Eligible borrowers include hospitals, private physician and dental practices, community health centers, long-term care providers, behavioral health providers, pharmacists and others.
     For more information: Phone: 304-397-4071 or go to wvruralhealth.org.
     

111. Mid-Ohio Valley Regional Council

     A community development lender in central West Virginia counties.
     Benefits: Receive between $2,000 - $250,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Focused on companies in Ritchie, Wood, Pleasants, Jackson, Calhoun, Roane, Tyler and Wirt counties with limited offerings to Doddridge, Gilmer, Mason and Tucker counties.
     For more information: Point of Contact: Carol Jackson Phone: 304-422-4993 or go to movrc.org.
     

112. The Progress Fund

     A Greenburg, PA, alternative lender for hard-to-finance projects.
     Benefits: Receive between $50,000 - $1,000,000 loans. Loan recipient characteristics Can be used to restore old buildings or finance a tourism or hospitality business.
     For more information: Phone: 724-216-9160 or go to progressfund.org.
     

113. West Virginia Economic Development Authority (WVEDA)

     An alternative lender for West Virginia companies that emphasizes job creation in its lending criteria.
     Benefits: Receive between $50,000 - $10,000,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Loans can be used for manufacturing, distribution centers or technology-based companies.
     For more information: go to wveda.org.
     

114. Boone County Community and Economic Development Corporation

     Has assisted new and expanding small businesses with working capital through a regional microloan program.
     Benefits: Receive between $2,000 - $10,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: The goals are to aid in the development of small businesses and to create and preserve jobs in Boone, Logan, Lincoln and Mingo counties.
     For more information: Phone: 304-369-9118 or go to Boone County Community.
     

115. Charleston Main Street CWVenture MicroLoan Program Under

     this lending program, CMS provides small startup or expansion loans.
     Benefits: Receive between $500 - $5,000 loans.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Loans can be used for projects including working capital, real estate, capital improvements, machinery and equipment.
     For more information: go to Charleston Main WVenture.
     

116. Regional Development Funding Corporation (RDFC)

     Based in Pittsburgh, RDFC offers SBA’s 504 loan program throughout West Virginia.
     Benefits: Works with business operators and other lenders to craft loan packages.
     Loan recipient characteristics: Available for most qualified small businesses that meet the collaborative loan package requirements.
     For more information: go to  RDFC.
     

Targeting impact businesses

117. RSF Social Finance

     Funds diverse company founders working toward solutions that deliver social, economic and ecological benefit.
     Benefits: Receive between $200,000 - $5,000,000 loans.
     Portfolio company characteristics: Funds companies whose mission drives what they do and how they do it. For example, use of funds includes creating new opportunities for youth or preserving farmland.
     For more information: Email RSF or go to  rsfsocialfinance.org.