Arctaris Impact CDE Enables NMTC Financing to Contribute to Living Wage Job Creation
Arctaris Impact Investors, LLC, a national impact investment firm supporting revitalization projects in underserved communities, announces that on July 25, 2024, Arctaris Impact CDE closed a New Markets Tax Credit (NMTC) transaction with Fearless Talent, LLC (dba Fearless Guides), a division of Fearless, a minority-owned company located in a Baltimore census tract with a 26.4%1 poverty rate. The NMTC financing will be directed to working capital that will create 50 jobs, all of which will pay above a living wage and be accessible to those without a college degree. The working capital will also enhance the community impacts provided by their business accelerator program, Hutch.
Founded by Fearless, Hutch is an intensive program that provides underrepresented entrepreneurs with a blueprint for building successful and impactful government digital services firms. It equips businesses with the tools, mentorship, and peer-to-peer support they need to thrive in the world of government contracting. Hutch is one of the few accelerators in the country focused on civic tech and the only one that is managed by digital services experts focused on supporting women and minority entrepreneurs working in digital services.
Arctaris is thrilled to provide financing that will increase the impact of this growing Baltimore company. “Helping to bridge the wealth gap is an Arctaris goal. As a result, we worked with Fearless’ visionary management to leverage the NMTC program to support the hiring of 50 people into living wage jobs,” stated Uche Osuji, Managing Director of Arctaris Impact CDE, LLC.
Fearless is ranked as the largest software company in the Baltimore region and the area’s largest minority-owned business. In 2023, the company announced that it was evolving beyond tech to be an impact-focused digital services integrator building software with a soul, while creating the conditions for organizations and their people to thrive. It created two divisions- Fearless Digital, the tech division, which designs, engineers, and delivers digital solutions, and Fearless Guides, the people and organizational enablement division.
Fearless Guides, the borrower in this NMTC transaction, provides an array of services that encompasses organizational development, skills enhancement, and workforce empowerment.
“This is an exciting opportunity for us to expand our people development and organization enablement work to build a pipeline of technologists from underrepresented and nontraditional backgrounds through our workforce development initiatives. Through Hutch, we will be able to increase the number of tech companies which will ultimately build generational wealth and a more diverse tech ecosystem in our region,” states Will Seamans, President, Fearless Guides.
Workforce development and the expansion of a diverse, inclusive tech ecosystem is rooted in Fearless’ mission. Fearless' goal by 2030 is to improve 100 million lives, operate in 10 countries, and reach 1 billion in revenue. They work across government agencies at the federal, state, and local levels to make the government more efficient, improve and preserve human life, and build a more equitable world.
“Internally, Fearless has a goal to build a team that reflects the population it serves through its government customers,” stated Seamans. “Today 47% of its workforce is BIPOC and 46% are women.” To build a future talent pipeline, Fearless has created partnerships with HBCUs and community colleges to host interns and create training programs to prepare students for careers in design, engineering, AI, and more.
About Arctaris Impact Investors, LLC
Arctaris Impact Investors, LLC is a national impact investment firm with experience spanning 15 years. The firm manages funds which invest in growth-oriented operating businesses, real estate and community infrastructure projects located in underserved communities. Founded in 2009, Arctaris has partnered with the Kresge Foundation, Harvard Business School Professor Michael Porter’s Initiative for a Competitive Inner City, and multiple other foundation, federal and state government agencies to invest in Opportunity Zones, inner cities and targeted rural communities throughout the U.S., with the aim of delivering above-market investment returns alongside positive social impact. For more information visit www.arctaris.com or for press inquiries contact Lillian@arctaris.com.
About Fearless
Hi, we're Fearless. We’re an impact-focused digital services integrator building software with a soul, while creating the conditions for organizations and their people to thrive. Through human-centered digital solutions and organizational transformation, we unlock the power of people, organizations, and tech. We focus on making government more efficient, improving and preserving human life, and building a more equitable world, working with agencies like SBA, GSA, CMS, USCIS, DHS, DoD, DIA, USAF, VA, US Army, Intel (IC), USDS, NARA, CDC, State of MD, State of CT, State of NJ, State of FL, and Smithsonian Institute. For more information visit https://fearless.tech or for press inquiries contact media@fearless.tech.
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1 Source: CohnReznick Interactive OZ and NMTC Map: Opportunity Zones and New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC) Interactive Map - CohnReznick
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