Accion Response to Covid-19 Pandemic

Accion’s Response to the COVID-19 Pandemic Para leer este mensaje en español, haga clic aquí.  To our clients, partners, funders and supporters, Helping neighborhood entrepreneurs grow is Accion’s mission. Now more than ever, Accion Serving Illinois & Indiana is working hard to creatively respond to the COVID-19 pandemic that threatens the health of small business owners, employees, customers, families, and communities. First, for all existing Accion Serving Illinois & Indiana clients, we offer you a 90% reduction in your monthly loan payment for the next three months. We will extend the term of your loan for three months after the original maturity date to help you to catch up after the crisis has passed. Click here to request this option and to learn more.  Second, for existing Accion clients and for any entrepreneur who needs access to capital right now, we are launching an expedited Accion line of credit application for up to $25,000. Any entrepreneur who has a clean credit report in 2019 is eligible for this expedited process. Rather than conduct a full underwrite of your business, we will set the maximum loan amount based on your monthly revenues in January and February. If you didn’t make on-time payments in 2019 or you need more capital than your recent revenues suggest, we are still here to help: an Accion Community Lender will work with you to evaluate your application in more detail. Click here to apply.  Third, the Accion Coaching Team continues to be available to provide you free assistance. Please click here to schedule a meeting with a Business Coach.  Fourth, we are working quickly with philanthropic and government partners to explore possible ways to provide additional emergency help to entrepreneurs in need of financial support. We will communicate more about this effort as soon as possible. Finally, in effort to contribute to the flattening of the infection curve, many of our staff will be working remotely starting tomorrow, March 17. We will continue to be reachable by phone and email and will work just as effectively to meet the needs of our clients and partners. In addition, all Accion-led events at The Hatchery are postponed or moved to digital platforms through the end of March. If you have any questions or concerns, please call us at 312-275-3000 or email us at info@accionchicago.org. We thank you for your partnership and support, and wish the best to you and your families during these difficult times. Brad McConnell CEO