Candide Group is thrilled to announce the official close of the first phase of the Olamina Fund!

The Olamina Fund launched in October 2019 as a $40M loan fund with the goal of addressing the historic lack of access to capital in American communities — particularly Black, Native, and rural — who have faced decades of divestment and intentional extraction. Our core impact thesis was built around the principles of representation, community-centered products and services, access to capital, and community wealth-building.

Representation to us is reflected by the lived experience of an organization's decision-makers and how close it is to the community served. We look for organizations that develop, design, and customize financial products around a community's needs and refine their products and services based on community feedback. We fund organizations that are led by women, Black, Indigenous, and other people of color who have systemically lacked access to capital as a means to address the racial wealth gap in our country (the US). We also examine the extent to which an organization emphasizes community wealth-building through its connection and engagement with the community and through its focus on access to capital, housing, quality food, healthcare, public services, and education.

With the continued leadership of Leslie Lindo as Managing Director and the dedication of Portfolio Manager Leticia Corona, we are proud to have fully invested the first phase of the Fund in alignment with our impact thesis. This $40M includes $20.3M invested into the Deep South, $17.5M into the Rural US, and $9.5M into Indian Country through 22 CDFIs, private loan funds, and other community empowerment organizations that focus on serving these communities. We committed 100% of our capital into BIPOC and women-led organizations. Our initial goal was 80%.

This marks a significant step in how we reinvest in the communities that have been most harmed by the financial system. Olamina was created to demonstrate that the organizations which are led by people from the community they serve —

and which center the needs of that community — are ultimately best able to manage resources and risk than those who are not. To date, all of Olamina's loan clients are current on payments and in compliance, and we have not had any write-offs — even through the tumultuous pandemic years.

A Community Endeavor

The Olamina Fund centered community from its inception; recognizing the gap between community-led institutions, CDFIs, and private funds that were seeking patient and flexible capital to fund their loan programs, and investors with an appetite for providing loans to be activated for social and racial justice. Candide Group's Founding Partners — Aner Ben-Ami and Morgan Simon — conceived of a fund to close this gap. The fund's Founding Managing Director Lynne Hoey spent two months learning from over twenty-five peers, movement leaders, and potential loan clients to develop the various aspects of the Fund, from its theory of change to its structure. Organizations that shared their experience and provided input included RUNWAY, Chordata Capital, Nwamaka Agbo Consulting, Common Future, Kitchen Table Advisors, Social Impact Strategies Group, Oweesta, and Associated Tribes of Northwest Indians Economic Development Corporation.

In her role as Director of Operations at Candide during this time, Laurika Harris-Kaye also held community conversations to invite further feedback on the design and structure of the Fund, including the implications of having a white woman lead a racial-justice-oriented fund. The name "Olamina" was chosen for the Fund by Jasmine Rashid to reflect the determination of Lauren Olamina, Octavia Butler's protagonist from Parable of the Sower & Parable of the Talents, who boldly leads her community to search for a better future in the midst of their dystopian reality.

A community governance structure was intended for the Fund early on, and the community advisor board model that we designed was informed by the feedback sessions. The purpose of Olamina's Community Advisory Board ("CAB") is to shift traditional power dynamics in the financial system. We formalized this governing body by stating it in our investment documents.

The CAB consists of members who represent the communities where we invest. They advise our strategy, review opportunities from a community wealth-building perspective, and participate in credit decisions as part of the Credit Committee that approves all loans.

We are grateful for the contributions the CAB has made since the group formed in September 2020. From the beginning, we have considered ourselves facilitators of the CAB, leaving critical decision-making to these community leaders. At the time of the CAB's formation, Olamina had only made five loans. From their first month, the CAB set the priority for our following investments, and since June 2021, they have each been participating members of the Credit Committee. To date, the CAB's contribution has been:

• Setting the priority for 11 investment opportunities, leading to eight loans totaling $13M in investments.
• Reviewing and approving nine loans totaling $11.3M in investments.
• Directing a total of 60% of the financial capital Olamina has invested to date.

We are working with the Community Advisory Board to finalize the democratic governance structure of the Fund and set the vision and strategy moving forward. They will also contribute to investor evaluation and selection in Olamina's next phase.

"My understanding of the financial world has grown so much on this committee. The staff at Candide and work with the Olamina fund, you all are amazing and the impact of this work has made worlds of difference. [It's] an honor to have learn with you all. Thank you for this opportunity to serve."

~ Prairie Rose Seminole, Olamina Community Advisory Board Member

What's Next for the Olamina Fund?

As we reflect on lessons learned from the first phase of Olamina and think about the next phase of the Fund, it is clear to us that there is increased opportunity to support more emerging funds, initiatives that transfer land and real estate to community control and stewardship, and other community-centered business models that support cultural preservation, permanent affordability, and shared ownership of businesses.

These investments require even more patient and flexible capital than the CDFIs and established loan funds that we support. We have begun learning what it means to be a partner in this work through some of the investments we have made in Olamina's first phase, such as Historic Clayborn Temple, Partnership for Southern Equity, Kibilio Community and Farm, Historic District Development Corporation, Urban Tilth, and the Port of Africatown. In the first part of this year, the Olamina team will have a deeper exploration into what is needed to best support the long-term vision and viability of these models and structure the next phase of the Fund accordingly.

Opening Up to New Investors

Olamina was fortunate to partner with investors in the initial phase of our Fund who were (and remain) committed to leveraging their wealth for deep impact. As we structure the next phase of the Fund based on those we seek to serve, this will set the priority for the type of funding we seek from Olamina's next group of investors. We look forward to being in conversation and partnering with investors who are also committed to healing, power-sharing, and self-determination within communities that have been intentionally disinvested from and invisibilized.

We welcome those who are interested in continuing on this journey with us. Please contact Leslie Lindo directly at [email protected] if you or people you know would like to learn more about the process of joining our investor community! Olamina will formally open up to accredited investors in the second half of this year. We look forward to hearing from you!

Recruiting New Community Advisory Board Members

The Community Advisory Board is central to Olamina Fund's design and strategy, and we're thrilled that all current members will stay on for the next phase! We will also add three new members to round out the board and expand representation to include those who have experience in the work we will prioritize in our next phase. Stay tuned for more information about how you or someone you know could be the perfect fit when we open applications this Summer!

Lifting Up Community Stories

Candide Group published our first comprehensive Impact Report In February 2023, and we look forward to sharing an Olamina-specific follow-up that highlights the work of our loan clients.

And as we continue to grow and learn as a fund, we want to share our reflections to support the progression of racial and economic justice in the impact investing space. Perspectives will include the CAB's experiences in directing capital, loan clients' experiences in supporting community self-determination, and field learnings on investing as a debt vehicle with the lens of restoration and reparations.