ORLANDO, FL. – Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida (NASDAQ: SBCF) today announced a partnership to support the Black Business Investment Fund (BBIF), a Florida nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution. As part of this partnership, Seacoast will join the BBIF Community Development Committee and the BBIF Small Business Association Credit Underwriting Committee. This partnership reflects Seacoast’s ongoing commitment to the economic health of Black and minority-owned businesses.
“We are grateful for our partners at Seacoast Bank, and their commitment to serving the BIPOC business community,” said Duane Lewis, COO, BBIF. “Their commitment to our organization, not just through grant funding, but also volunteerism demonstrates the kind of allyship that helps create lasting change for the entrepreneurs we serve.”
At BBIF we develop and promote Black, minority and underserved businesses through education, training, loans, and investments. Seacoast will also provide BBIF with a $60,000 grant to help fund its operational expenses, allowing the organization to continue to train and support underserved businesses.
“Seacoast is a community bank in every sense of the term, and we’re committed to supporting our neighbors throughout Florida,” said Charles Shaffer, President and CEO of Seacoast Bank. “We are constantly looking for new ways to make a meaningful impact in the communities we serve.”
As a Community Development Financial Institution, BBIF capitalizes, develops, and strengthens Black, minority, and underserved small businesses throughout Florida through loans and technical assistance programs related to finance. Since it was established by the Florida Legislature in 1985, the well-regarded institution has issued over 1,061 loans totaling more than $81 million to historically underserved businesses.
About BBIF
Created in 1987, BBIF’s mission is to develop and promote Black business enterprises through education, training, loans, investments, and other activities and to aggressively promote an atmosphere conducive to their development. A mission-driven lender, BBIF helps communities and businesses thrive by providing loan capital and specialized financial technical assistance services. BBIF is a CDFI (Community Development Financial Institution) and CDE (Community Development Enterprise) certified by the U.S. Department of the Treasury, Community Advantage and Micro Loan lender as certified by U.S. Small Business Administration, Money Smart for Small Business collaborator certified by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and is AERIS rated triple star, A-minus. Since our inception, BBIF has provided over 1,000 loans totaling $81 million and leveraged $292 million in New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) community investments. BBIF’s investments have helped to create/sustain over 13,884 jobs all while maintaining a historical loan loss rate of 3.5%. Learn more at www.BBIF.com.
About Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida (NASDAQ: SBCF)
Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida (NASDAQ: SBCF) is one of the largest community banks headquartered in Florida with approximately $9.7 billion in assets and $8.1 billion in deposits as of December 31, 2021. Seacoast provides integrated financial services including commercial and consumer banking, wealth management, and mortgage services to customers at over 50 full-service branches across Florida, and through advanced mobile and online banking solutions. Seacoast National Bank is the wholly-owned subsidiary bank of Seacoast Banking Corporation of Florida. For more information about Seacoast, visit www.SeacoastBanking.com.
