MCF Launches Integrated Capital Crisis Response & Recovery Approach

Acting quickly to address the crisis, MCF and Saint Paul and Minnesota Foundation created the Minnesota Disaster Recovery Fund (MDRF). The MDRF funds both short and long-term needs that arise within communities, due to coronavirus or future disasters that occur within the state of Minnesota. To date, donors have contributed $11 million for this fund.

The magnitude of the crisis requires philanthropy to be bold, creative, and fast. In addition to grants, MCF is launching an “Integrated Capital Crisis Response & Recovery” approach to enable members to increase their impact quickly yet thoughtfully. This is a perfect time to consider making Program Related Investment (PRIs) in addition to expanded grant making. In many ways, PRIs are grants that come back, a valuable form of patient capital. Of course members can consider all types of Impact Investing in conjunction with grants and PRIs.

Integrated Capital, a term coined by RSF Social Finance, means using all the tools philanthropy possesses to solve a problem: Integrated capital is the coordinated use of different forms of financial capital and non-financial resources to support an enterprise that's working to solve complex social and environmental problems.

Action Options

1. MCF will provide education for members about Integrated Capital and how they can explore this concept to make loans along with grants to address the crisis. MCF will facilitate resource sharing among members, collect actions taken, and report back to all members on the total actions taken by members over the next three-six months.
2. For a limited time and with additional support, MCF will provide expanded access to the Impact Investing Executive in Residence (EIR), Susan Hammel, CFA. Over the next three months, she will offer weekly virtual office hours for members seeking specific advice on their course of action regarding loans and other types of financial investments.
3. MCF will craft a collaborative COVID-19 Program Related Investment (PRI) approach to encourage members to provide patient capital to CDFIs to get resources flowing to small businesses. A priority will be given to supporting businesses that are women-owned, BIPOC-owned (Black Indigenous People of Color), disability-owned and LGBT-owned as well as nonprofits and rural small businesses. MCF invites members to join an Integrated Capital workgroup to reach out to all 34 CDFIs in Minnesota to explore their needs.