Economy League of Greater Philadelphia
The Impact Capital Accelerator: Forging a More Equitable Economy for Greater Philadelphia
Philadelphia, PA
Capital Challenge
Federal Share: $300,000
Local Match: $300,000
The Impact Capital Accelerator aims to forge a more equitable business landscape for Greater Philadelphia’s $490 billion regional economy. A partnership between The Economy League of Greater Philadelphia, ImpactPHL, and Social Venture Circle, the Accelerator is a 3-year pilot project that will cultivate new sources of values-aligned private capital from a growing local community of individual and institutional impact investors to drive direct risk and growth investments into Philadelphia-based minority-owned enterprises. The Philadelphia region faces stark and persistent economic inequality: the city’s minority population comprises 65% of the total population, yet only own 23% of local enterprises. At the same time, 24.5% of Philadelphians live in poverty (the largest percentage of any major U.S. city).
Without new approaches to addressing and solving these structurally ingrained inequalities, the region will endure worsening social and economic divides. The Impact Capital Accelerator will provide a new, direct economic intervention linking the supply and demand for regional impact investments to infuse capital into Philadelphia’s minority-owned business economy, which will, in turn, increase minority business ownership, expand opportunity, build wealth, and create jobs. Secondary benefits include increased community health, neighborhood vitality, and economic mobility. Connecting the supply and demand for regional impact investments will help to make Philadelphia’s regional economy more inclusive, equitable, and resilient.