Issue link: https://nebusinessmedia.uberflip.com/i/1170674
2019 | DOING BUSINESS IN CONNECTICUT | 57 West Hartford-based WorldBusiness Capital finances overseas institutions that, in turn, lend to the local marketplace. Bank On It Small and mid-sized firms with global ambitions find financing and expertise in Connecticut By Carol Latter When a husband and wife team took over an embryonic Connecticut food manufacturing business, they had a vision for growing it into a much larger operation. The couple had a solid base: a fully integrated operation with a production facility in India and established distribution to the U.S., Canada, and Australia. But to substantially grow the enterprise, they needed financing – something not easy to come by, since traditional banks typically offer international lending only for larger, more established companies. Enter Hartford-based WorldBusiness Capital. At the time, "they were doing less than $8 million in revenue," recalls Brett N. Silvers, president and CEO of WBC. "We did three rounds of financing with them, giving them three long-term loans to expand their U.S. and overseas products and operations in India." The investment paid off. The USDA-compliant company took off like a rocket, adding Costco and Whole Foods to its client roster, significantly growing its management and staff, and hiking annual sales to $45-$50 million before the owners sold the company in 2015. "We were very fortunate to be involved," said Silvers, adding that this successful scenario "is fairly typical of what we do, funding these kinds of industries in the U.S., in addition to overseas operations." WorldBusiness Capital, located on State Street and founded in 2003, is an independent commercial lender that specializes in serving small and mid-sized businesses, using federal agency guarantees from the Overseas Private Investment Corporation (OPIC), the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) and the Export‐ Import Bank (Ex‐Im Bank) – the official export credit agency of the United States. "We're the only lending institution in the country that has all three of these programs," Silvers said. "We make loans and cover risk with guarantees from agencies with a public interest purpose. As a result, we can provide businesses with much more favorable terms – a longer loan term, lower rates, and more flexible use of proceeds. We do financing for projects and direct foreign investment, and we increase the capacity of companies to do business abroad." Clients aren't limited to American business owners. WBC makes term loans of $5-$15 million for businesses, projects, and financial intermediaries located in Mexico, Turkey, India, and Brazil, as well as loans of $3-$10 million to businesses from those countries and China to expand in the United States, with a repayment schedule of up to 20 years. Similar terms are available to U.S.-based rural businesses that need financing for cross-border trade and investment, and to overseas buyers of new, American-made equipment, technology, and services. "We also finance overseas institutions that out-lend to the local marketplace – commercial finance companies, housing finance companies, and microfinance companies that are involved in women's empowerment to help with poverty alleviation and rural development," Silvers said. INSURANCE & FINANCIAL SERVICES