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In this issue:
Enjoy and let us know what you think!
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Opportunity Fund receives $3 million grant from JPMorgan Chase!
| Grant helps launch "GreenforGreen" - new loans to help businesses go green!
|   Opportunity Fund has received a $3 million grant from JPMorgan Chase to support our small business microlending in the Bay Area. "This grant of private loan capital is the largest in  Opportunity Fund's history, doubling our lending capacity overnight," said CEO Eric Weaver.
Chase and Opportunity Fund announced the grant, which is one of five investments Chase is making in Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) across the nation, at a press conference in San Francisco on January 28th. "This will help give small businesses access to the credit they need to create jobs and continue to develop momentum in our thriving Bay Area green economy," said Peter Barker, Chairman of JPMorgan Chase in California.
Senator Leland Yee, SF Board of Supervisors President David Chiu, SBA Regional Administrator Elizabeth Echols, and Director of the SF Office of the Environment Melanie Nutter attended the event. Leigh Phillips from the Office of Financial Empowerment presented a proclamation from SF Treasurer Jose Cisneros commending Opportunity Fund's work to support small businesses.
 Opportunity Fund is using part of the grant to launch our new green lending initiative, GreenforGreen, to help small business owners reduce energy costs and environmental waste or provide sustainable products and services.
See more photos from the press conference on Opportunity Fund's facebook page!
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Affordable Housing Milestone: $100 million invested!
| Building safe, affordable homes for low-income families
|  Opportunity Fund's Affordable Housing lending team has now lent out more than $100,000,000 to develop safe, affordable homes and community facilities for more than 7,800 low-income families across the Bay Area!
Our latest project deployed $370,400 to support the construction of Peacock Commons, a new affordable housing complex in Santa Clara being developed by the Bill Wilson Center. Peacock Commons will provide a home for transition-aged youth as they exit the foster care program and enter adulthood.
Congratulations to the Affordable Housing lending team, Toby, Martha, and John!
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| Job Openings: Seeking Controller and Summer Evaluation Associate | Join our growing team!
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A warm welcome to our three newest staff members: Ingrid Holquin and Minela Bjelevac join our IDA Microsavings team and Belay Tessema joins our Community Real Estate group.
We are recruiting for two positions:
+Controller: Experienced, non-profit controller with 4+ years experience with fund accounting and handling audits.
+Social Impact Evaluation Associate (Summer Intern): Dynamic graduate student with great people and project management skills who wants to dedicate their summer to evaluation projects.
Visit our Careers page to learn more - and please spread the word to your network!
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| Silicon Valley Microfinance Network Finds New Home Within Opportunity Fund |
|  Silicon Valley Microfinance Network (SVMN) is the Bay Area's premier microfinance network, respected for its preeminent speaker series and educational events hosted throughout the year. Opportunity Fund is proud to support this grassroots organization as its new parent organization! We look forward to supporting SVMN to raise the profile of microfinance in our backyard and around the world. For more information, please visit:
svmn.net/faq
Upcoming SVMN Event: Microfinance Cocktail Party & Photography Silent Auction When: Thursday, February 17, 6-9pm
Where: Project One Gallery, San Francisco
What: Mingle with the Bay Area microfinance crowd, enjoy appetizers and a cash bar, plus dancing. Silent auction: bid on prints from CGAP's collection of award-winning photographs documenting microfinance worldwide.
RSVP: Tickets are $15-$20, includes admission & appetizers. Cash bar.
To purchase tickets, click here. |
From Our Blog: Partnering With Citi to Bring Microsavings to Market
| Are You a Bank?
by Eric Weaver, Founder & CEO
Published February 8, 2011
 When I tell people that Opportunity Fund operates one of the largest and most successful microsavings programs in the country, they tend to assume we are a depository institution, like a credit union or a bank.
In fact, Opportunity Fund has never been able to accept deposits (due to financial regulations), and it is unlikely we ever will. Instead, we have relied on a partnership with one of the world's largest deposit-takers, Citi, since we launched our microsavings program in 1999. (continue reading >>) | |
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