Meet Inez Long, president and CEO of the Black Business Investment Fund (BBIF), a non-profit, mission-driven, Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) that helps Florida businesses thrive by providing loan capital alongside with business development training. Under her leadership since 1991, BBIF has provided over $47.6 million in loans to over 406 Black and minority businesses and has created and sustained over 12,906 jobs.
Last year alone, Inez raised $31 million dollars for the organization from major sponsors like Wells Fargo and SunTrust Community Capital.
Long, who was born and raised in Central Florida, earned her MBA from the University of Central Florida (UCF) and her BA in Accounting from the University of South Florida (USF). She has 28 years of combined experience in the financial services industry.
In her role as CEO of BBIF, her goal ultimately is to stabilize low-income, distressed neighborhoods by investing in economic development projects that benefit urban communities and create jobs. It is the largest and strongest minority led Community Development Financial Institution in the state of Florida.
Headquartered in Orlando, Florida, BBIF was created in 1987 out of Florida Statute to provide loan capital to Black-owned businesses in the central Florida community. The organization has grown from a small regional loan fund to Florida’s leading statewide lender that specializes in providing capital to Black, other minority and underserved businesses.
For more details, visit their official web site at www.BBIFFlorida.com