Investing in local businesses
In 2024, as Denver welcomed a growing number of immigrants, CEDS Finance began conversations with The Denver Foundation about an impact investment to expand CEDS lending to address the increasing demand among the entrepreneurs they support.
The opportunity was a strong fit, aligning with our mission and our experience with impact investments.
The Denver Foundation started our Impact Investment Pool in 2013 with gifts from numerous donors and an initial investment of $1 million from the foundation’s operating reserve. Following a board decision in 2023, we doubled the size of the pool, increasing the opportunities to create meaningful impact in the places we all care about.
Since creating this program, we’ve used impact investments as an innovative way to partner with our donors and nonprofits to address community needs, such as expanding economic opportunity, while also generating financial returns.
A trusted partner and shared purpose
CEDS Finance was founded to help immigrants, refugees, and other underserved small business owners achieve financial self-sufficiency. They work with immigrants and refugees who are still building up their assets, or have had to leave their assets at home.
CEDS helps people build up their credit score, assets, and collateral so that once they successfully repay their CEDS loans, they can apply for loans within the traditional financial sector. The way they do that is by providing small business owners with micro-loans for up to $100,000 and free technical assistance.
The Denver Foundation's bold, longstanding partnership has been instrumental in our ability to grow and innovate our financial services, allowing us to uniquely serve immigrant and refugee entrepreneurs who are systematically excluded from traditional financing pathways.
- Alexandria Wise, CEDS Finance executive director.
At The Denver Foundation, we believe economic opportunity is achievable when communities have the tools and resources to build wealth, increase assets, and create local and just economies, which is why we’ve partnered with CEDS, supporting their work alongside our donors since 2014, and through our Community Grants Program since 2022. Between 2014 and May 2026, we’ve seen CEDS invest $18.7 million into more than 650 entrepreneurs in the Denver Metro area. CEDS has also created more than 1,727 local jobs and allowed our community to thrive.
“The Denver Foundation’s bold, longstanding partnership has been instrumental in our ability to grow and innovate our financial services, allowing us to uniquely serve immigrant and refugee entrepreneurs who are systematically excluded from traditional financing pathways,” said Alexandria Wise, CEDS Finance, executive director.
When we started these early conversations in 2024 about this impact investment opportunity, we knew CEDS would be a strong partner to help support foreign-born business owners in Colorado’s local economy.
One of the unique practices that sets CEDS apart is its Islamic-compliant business lending product, Murabahas. Murabahas offer a monthly fee structure instead of an interest-based structure. Many Muslims are excluded from traditional loans because interest (riba) conflicts with their religious principles. CEDS is the only organization in Colorado that does this.
Success stories
Mahad Hassan, a truck driver who always dreamed of owning his own business, faced a significant obstacle because his faith prohibited the use of traditional loans involving interest. Once he discovered the Islamic-compliant loan option at CEDS, Mahad was able to purchase his own truck, turning his long-held dream into reality. “This was a major turning point for my business,” Mahad proudly shared. “Alhamdulillah, I’m doing well now.”
Another practice that sets CEDS apart is through its character-based underwriting. Character-based underwriting is more about getting to know each individual entrepreneur. It asks who they are, what their business plan is, and who is part of their community. This is valuable information that helps inform the loan process at CEDS.
In Aurora on Havana Street, Abdurahman Ahmed Mohamed has built a thriving ethnic goods store, Durdur Wholesale and Retail LLC, specializing in clothes, carpets, beauty products, suits, and accessories from around the world. With a Murabaha loan from CEDS Finance, he’s enhancing his inventory by sourcing premium products from Saudi Arabia, Dubai, and Turkey, allowing him to provide a wider selection to customers seeking familiar goods from their homelands. Recognizing his community’s diverse needs, Abdurahman has also expanded to include remittance services.
“CEDS came when I really needed the boost during a time when other loan institutions overlooked my business,” Abdurahman shares. “They recognized the potential in how I ran my store and gave me the chance to grow.”
The investment: Making business lending more inclusive and accessible
After learning more about the impact investment opportunity with CEDS, and how it could benefit our community, we decided to make a $500,000 program-related investment (PRI) to support their lending practices, and expand their Murabahas (Islamic-compliant lending product) to Islamic-owned small businesses. Our investment is expected to generate a financial return over time, while contributing to a larger pool of funding to help CEDS expand its lending and move closer to its strategic goal of supporting more immigrant and refugee entrepreneurs nationally.
“Education and integration into the American business and financial systems that coincide with the beliefs and practices of the Islamic faith, Muslim families and businesses, are essential. With this cooperative relationship, Muslims and non-Muslims can benefit from the American Dream and help make it a reality for all Coloradans,” said Timothy Floyd, board member at CEDS Finance.
Ways to engage
Through our Impact Investing, we make direct investments in ideas, programs, and initiatives that support our community in innovative ways. We invite donors and fundholders to partner with us as funders and impact investors.
Donors can participate in impact investing through their donor-advised fund at The Denver Foundation by giving to our Impact Investment Pool or by joining us in individual impact investments. There are select opportunities throughout the year to co-invest alongside the foundation, and donors may also recommend their own impact investments.
To learn more about impact investing at The Denver Foundation, please contact us at 303.300.1790, or email information@denverfoundation.org.
