Wells Fargo Open for Business Growth initiative

Wells Fargo Open for Business Growth initiative is sponsored by Wells Fargo & Company (through ICA Fund). This initiative provides funding to organizations like ICA Fund to support growth-ready small businesses across the Bay Area with capital and resources to scale. The focus is on businesses that have outgrown micro-loans but do not yet qualify for conventional bank financing.

$2. 25 Million to fuel local business growth | ICA Celebrate 30 years with ICA Our Impact Explore Donate Donate $2. 25 Million to fuel local business growth Oakland, CA — March 25, 2026 ICA Fund is excited to announce a $2.

25 million grant from Wells Fargo & Company as part of its Open for Business Growth initiative, a $20 million philanthropic program designed to help growth-ready small businesses access the capital and resources they need to scale. This investment comes at a milestone moment as ICA Fund celebrates its 30th anniversary of supporting entrepreneurs and strengthening local economies.

Through this new funding, ICA Fund will expand its ability to provide founder-friendly capital and hands-on support to entrepreneurs across the Bay Area who are ready to grow but face barriers to traditional financing. The initiative is focused on closing a critical gap in the small business ecosystem: companies that have outgrown micro-loans but do not yet qualify for conventional bank financing.

“Growth-ready small businesses are a powerful engine for job creation and local economic development, but they need access to the right kind of capital when expansion is on the horizon,” said Kimelyn Harris, head of Business Growth Philanthropy at Wells Fargo. “Through Open for Business Growth, we work with organizations like ICA Fund to deliver flexible, innovative financing tailored to entrepreneurs’ needs.

This support helps businesses grow, create jobs, and reach their full potential. ” The Open for Business Growth program builds on the success of Wells Fargo’s broader Open for Business Fund, a $420 million effort that has supported small businesses nationwide through community-based organizations.

This next phase focuses specifically on businesses on the “brink of expansion,” those with proven demand and strong potential, but limited access to appropriately structured capital. ICA Fund will use the grant to design and deploy tailored financial products and advisory services that align with the realities of scaling businesses.

By pairing investment with deep operational support, ICA helps founders navigate challenges, strengthen fundamentals, and grow sustainably. “Small businesses are essential to vibrant, resilient communities, but too many great companies are stuck small because the financial system is limited for them,” said Allison Kelly, CEO of ICA Fund.

“As we celebrate 30 years of investing in entrepreneurs, this funding from Wells Fargo allows us to deepen our impact and expand access to fair, flexible capital for those ready to scale. By investing in these businesses at the right moment, we can unlock growth, create quality jobs, and build lasting community wealth.

” ICA Fund’s model focuses on investing in businesses that have demonstrated market demand and are poised for expansion. The organization provides not only capital, but also strategic guidance to help founders overcome barriers to growth, ensuring that businesses can scale in ways that are both financially successful and socially impactful.

ICA Fund is advancing a model rooted in the real economy: supporting revenue-generating businesses that create jobs, reflect community diversity, and contribute to shared prosperity.

With support from Wells Fargo’s Open for Business Growth initiative, ICA Fund will continue working toward its vision of an economy that works for all, one where entrepreneurs have equitable access to opportunity, and small businesses can thrive as engines of inclusive economic growth.

This year, ICA Fund celebrates 30 years of backing great businesses and proving what’s possible when underrepresented founders get the support they deserve. To mark this occasion we will be lifting up the ICA Fund community that got us this far and charting the bold work ahead. Stay tuned for new founder stories, case studies on the innovations our portfolio companies are creating, and deep dives on how our model works.

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