Our Story.
Carolina Small Business Development Fund (CSBDF) is a 501(c)3 nonprofit guided by the belief that when small businesses succeed, everyone benefits. When we first opened our doors in 1990 as the North Carolina Minority Support Center, we were providing technical assistance to financial institutions and entrepreneurs, and in our first 20 years of service to our state, we administered millions of dollars in grants to help address the needs of unserved and underserved people and communities.
When the financial crisis of 2008 threatened Main Street firms across our state and nation, our leadership knew that we were in the position to not only double down on our work serving underserved communities, but to expand our services as well. We ushered in a new era for our work in 2011, when we made our first loan to a North Carolina small business, and eventually became a certified Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) in 2013. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic’s economic aftershocks, we doubled down once again and expanded our services to ensure that our state’s small businesses could succeed, and the communities they serve would benefit.
Throughout our 32-year history, we have met entrepreneurs at the crossroads of hardship and opportunity—and we will continue to light the way forward for whatever comes next.
Our Vision
To create economic opportunity for all people.
Our Mission
To foster economic development in underserved communities by providing capital, technical assistance, and policy research to light the way for small businesses.
A partner for
small business
in the Carolinas.
A trusted
business guide.
A small business advocate.
An accessible
funding resource.
MEET THE BOARD
Paulette Dillard, Ph.D.
CSBDF Governance, Executive Committees, Board Chairperson
President
Shaw University
Ted Archer
CSBDF Governance, Executive, Board Vice-Chair
Vice President & Head of Small Business Forward
JPMorgan Chase & Co.
Tiffany McNeill
CSBDF Policy & Research Chair
Economic Development Director
Town of Fuquay-Varina
Frank Pollock
CSBDF Business Solutions Committee
President
TPG Consulting
Bobby Robinson
CSBDF Governance Chair; Business Solutions Committee
Member
Maynard Nexsen
Rodrick Banks
CSBDF Policy & Research Committee
Vice President, Senior Community Relations Consultant Charlotte and Western Atlantic
Wells Fargo
Larry Garcia
CSBDF Credit, Business Solutions Committees
Chief Lending and Asset Management Officer,
National Association for Latino Community Asset Builders (NALCAB)
Grace L. Nystrum
CSBDF Governance Committee
Senior Vice President, Strategic Marketing Executive
Bank of America
Joseph L. Fox, Ed.D., M.B.A., PHR
CSBDF Business Solutions Committee
Fox Management Consulting Enterprises, LLC
Huntley Garriott
CSBDF Finance Committee
President
Live Oak Bank
Aaron Thomas
CSBDF Board Member
President
Metcon, Inc.
Pilar Rocha-Goldberg
CSBDF Board Member
President and CEO
El Centro Hispano, Inc.
Stephen Dille
CSBDF Board Member
Vice President of Finance and Administration
The Carolina Center for Medical Excellence
Merrill Flood
CSBDF Board Member
Director, Millennial Campus Planning & Local Community Affairs
East Carolina University
Jeff Marshall
CSBDF Board Member
Senior Vice President, Commercial Banking
TowneBank
Leslie Person
CSBDF Board Member
Senior Vice President
Pinnacle Financial Partners