On October 22, 2024, the Small Business Administration and Defense Department said 13 funds had reached the initiative’s Green Light approval stage. Managed by 12 firms, the funds planned to raise $2.8 billion in private capital, matched with SBA-guaranteed loans, for investments in more than 1,000 startups and small businesses developing critical technologies. Those were stated plans, not a report that the full amount had already been raised or invested. [story-s1]
The program, formally launched in fall 2023, had drawn expressions of interest from more than 100 funds; 22 had submitted formal applications. The SBA said it granted the first initiative license in early July 2024. Under the program, licensed funds can access up to $175 million in SBA debenture loans, while the Defense Department provides additional program-related benefits. The announced funds spanned all 14 Defense Department critical-technology areas and ranged from seed-stage venture investment to later-stage buyouts and credit strategies. [story-s1]
The announcement marks an early expansion of a federal effort to direct private capital toward technology companies considered important to economic and national security. Its near-term measure was a pipeline of approved funds and fundraising plans; whether the funds subsequently raised and deployed the targeted capital is a separate outcome. The SBA listed November 15, 2024, as the next application filing deadline. [story-s1]
Source documents
- U.S. Small Business Administration and Department of Defense Celebrate Successful First Year for the Small Business Investment Company Critical Technology Initiativehttps://legacy.sba.gov/article/2024/10/22/us-small-business-administration-department-defense-celebrate-successful-first-year-small-business