Milestone Growth Fund is affiliated with the following organizations. Our involvement allows us to better help minority-owned businesses and to stay on the cutting edge of the venture capital industry and those associated with it.

Small Business Administration (SBA)
The U.S. Small Business Administration is the government's most cost-effective tool for economic development. Founded in 1953, SBA has helped nearly 20 million small businesses either directly or indirectly through SBA programs. Milestone is licensed by the SBA and is the only Minnesota-based Small Business Investment Company (SBIC) to provide smaller amounts of long-term, high-risk, equity type financing and management assistance to minority entrepreneurs who belong to the African American, Asian, Hispanic, and Native American communities.

State of Minnesota Urban Initiative Program (MUIP)
The State of Minnesota Urban Initiative Program provides matching loans to companies in the Twin Cities with the goal of creating jobs in low income areas. Milestone has invested $3.7 million in 17 companies. Minnesota continues to make funds available under this program, and Milestone intends to use its full allocation during 2004. Under this program, Milestone has an excellent track record, and its investments have helped to bring businesses to certain parts of the Twin Cities identified by the State of Minnesota as areas in need of economic development.

Metropolitan Economic Development Association (MEDA)
MEDA is a nonprofit organization providing assistance to businesses that are owned and managed by ethnic minority residents of Minnesota. Unique among economic development organizations, MEDA's services are directed toward new or existing businesses whose owners are committed to generating long-term growth and profitability.

National Association of Investment Companies (NAIC)
Milestone is a member of the National Association of Investment Companies (NAIC), the only industry association for investment companies dedicating financial resources to investment in an ethnically diverse marketplace. NAIC member companies invest in privately held businesses that have a high probability of growth and the ability to generate significant returns for investors and shareholders.

National Association of Small Business Investment Companies (NASBIC)
As a Small Business Investment Company, Milestone is a member of the National Association of Small Business Investment Companies (NASBIC), a professional association representing the SBIC industry is the oldest continuously operating organization of venture capitalists in the world. Formed soon after the passage of the Small Business Investment Act of 1958, NASBIC has played a pivotal role in promoting the growth and vitality of the industry for more than 40 years.

Community Development Venture Capital Alliance (CDVCA)
Milestone is a member of the Community Development Venture Capital Alliance (CDVCA), a trade association for the rapidly growing community development venture capital industry. Formed in 1993 and incorporated as a not-for-profit in 1995, CDVCA promotes use of the tools of venture capital to create jobs, entrepreneurial capacity, and wealth to advance the livelihoods of low-income people and the economies of distressed communities.

Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI)
Milestone received its CDFI certification in 2001. The Community Development Financial Institutions Fund was created to expand the availability of credit, investment capital, and financial services in distressed urban and rural communities. By stimulating the creation and expansion of diverse community development financial institutions (CDFIs) and by providing incentives to traditional banks and thrifts, the Fund's investments work toward building private markets, creating healthy local tax revenues, and empowering residents. CDFIs are specialized financial institutions that work in market niches that have not been adequately served by traditional financial institutions.

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