Overview

Why are you interested in becoming a Trustee?

I am the owner of Richardson & Co., a Business Coaching & Consulting firm that aids entrepreneurs of color in business automation, competitive analysis, financial projections, strategic planning and professional development. I created the Blaze Women's Network as an extension of that business in response to the universal challenge that Black women have in accessing mentorship, knowledge and capital, evidenced by the staggeringly low annual revenues generated by Black women-owned businesses compared to women-owned business for all other ethnic groups - not to mention businesses overall. Blaze Women's Network to provides additional support to Black female entrepreneurs at scale. I am particularly interested in becoming a Kiva Trustee because I believe that a partnership between our firms will allow us to further our mission of expanding financial access to underserved communities. As a former Vice President of Bank of America in Wholesale Credit, where I managed a $20Bn portfolio of term and intraday credit, I have a keen understanding of the barriers to entry that exist for unbanked and fragmented minority communities. Gatekeepers of financial resources must adopt innovative ways of assessing and granting capital so that communities can thrive - just as Kiva is doing. According to the 2019 Women in Business Report, commissioned by American Express, Black women-owned businesses earned average annual revenue of only $24k compared to $149k for women-owned businesses overall. By providing a pipeline of worthy Borrowers through Kiva's 0% interest loans for US small businesses, I know that we can work to change this statistic… together.

What is the mission of your organization?

The mission of Blaze Women's Network is to provide Black female business owners with critical access to mentorship, knowledge and capital.

Borrower Due Diligence

How will you decide who to endorse as a borrower? What due diligence will you conduct?

All Borrowers will be screened in the following manner: Know Your Customer (KYC) pre-screening to validate the identity of the potential borrower. I will vet that the proper tax filings (such as Schedule C, etc.) exist to legitimize their business. I will ensure that business are not doing business with any sanctioned countries or involved with any dealing that are on the prohibited list(s) for lenders. Additionally, I will assess the Borrower's financial health (by reviewing existing and pro forma debt to income ratios, debt service coverage ratios and forward looking projections). I will ensure that forecasts are reasonable and supported with market evidence. I will garner a strong since of the minimum level of cash required to run the business and take that into consideration in conjunction with business forecasts in base and stress case scenarios. Through the term of the facility, it will be a requirement that Borrowers commit to quarterly check ins with me so that I can ensure that creditworthiness remains intact and take proactive action to mitigate financial threats should concerns arise.