Black Firms Help Run New $20 Million Fund In New Jersey To Supply Diverse Businesses Capital

Two Black-owned businesses, Conscious Venture Partners L.L.C., and Tale Venture Partners L.L.C., will be among three venture capital firms to run a $20 million seed fund in New Jersey to help minority firms grow.

Those firms, along with Red Bike Capital L.L.C., were approved by the New Jersey Economic Development Authority (NJEDA) to oversee the fund to help to close the racial wealth gap. The firms will each manage portions of the fund and make investments into early-stage, innovative, Black-and Latino-owned businesses throughout New Jersey based on this. The fund has been described as the first of its type nationally.

The cash infusion handled by the investment managers is needed. Though almost 45% of New Jersey’s 8.9 million residents are people of color and more than 200,000 businesses in the Garden State are minority-owned, those businesses historically do not get as much funding as their white counterparts.

Among their efforts, the venture capital firms plan to do everything from open offices in New Jersey to align with the fund commitment and engage with entrepreneurs at marketing and networking events.

Here is what officials said the firms’ participation would look like:

• Conscious Venture Partners will manage $7.5 million. The Maryland-based firm has a history of investing in diverse entrepreneurs and disadvantaged urban communities.

• Tale Venture Partners will manage $7.5 million. The California-based firm was founded by first- and second-generation Jamaican-Americans and has vowed to relocate its headquarters to New Jersey.

• Red Bike Capital will manage $5 million. The New York City-based company is committed to opening an office in New Jersey.

Businesses that will be supported with funding focus on life sciences, technology,  and innovation. It was reported the funding was created with input from Black and Latino founders, investors, and policy experts. The seed fund is aimed to help crush institutional barriers that hold Black and Latino entrepreneurs back and provide resources that respond to their needs.

NJEDA Chief Diversity and Inclusion Officer Michelle Bodden stated, “The NJEDA is working to remove systemic obstacles that far too many Black and Latino business owners face when trying to get their businesses off the ground. The fund we are launching will strengthen Black and Latino business owners, their families, and their communities–creating a stronger, fairer economic future for generations to come.”

Application details for funding have not been determined yet. Check out additional comments about the funding here and contact NJEDA at this link.