HELPING HAND: A $50 million program aims to propel N.C. businesses led by those overlooked by traditional financiers.

• Author: Ellis, Kevin

A new program from the North Carolina Rural Center will put as much as $50 million in the hands of investors, who will in turn invest the capital into the states small businesses. In July, the state-supported Rural Center expects to announce which venture capital funds, limited parmers and investors will be part of the program. Those companies must agree to match those funds on a 2-to-1 basis.

"This program will actually bring $ 150 million into the North Carolina economy," says Rodney Sampson, who oversees the federally funded N.C. Venture Capital Program for the center.

The programs goal involves placing 53% of the money in the hands of entrepreneurs identified as "socially and economically disadvantaged" by the Department of Treasury. The federal government will allocate $32 million at first, then add $28 million to the fund if the selected investors hit that mark of reaching people who have found it difficult to raise capital.

"Over the past 50 years or so, socially and economically disadvantaged individuals who start venture-backable companies have struggled to raise less than 1% of all private venture capital," Sampson says. Potential participants include military veterans, racial minorities, those who identify as part of the LGBTQcommunity, and those who live in rural areas, among others, according to program guidelines.

The commitment to direct a large portion of the money to members of those groups "is a game-changing model" to create generational wealth among people who experience inequitable obstacles, he says.

The social aspect of the funds excites Liam King, a director with 2ndF, a Raleigh-based venture capital firm whose mission includes investing in underrepresented minorities.

"You can't determine how successful someone is going to be based on where they come from or what they look like," says King. 2ndF hopes to participate in the program.

Goldsboro native Bill Spruill started 2ndF last year after selling Global Data Consortium to London Stock Exchange Group for $300 million. The company, which offered an identity-verification software platform and was formed by Spruill and Charles Gaddy, only received outside investment after the business had operated for 10 years.

"We saw a lot of founders in our space...