Representatives from the Export-Import (EXIM) Bank of the United States visited Delaware to discuss supporting Delaware businesses.
EXIM Bank is the official export credit agency of the United States, and works to support American job creation and security through exporting.
Nationwide, the number of women in entrepreneurship has risen- however many do not use traditional financing options. Instead, they self-finance, making it difficult to grow and reach new markets.
EXIM President and CEO Reta Jo Lewis says this isn’t always due to a lack of resources, but rather a lack of information.
She says it's important that federal agencies, like EXIM, reach businesses on a local level to help them expand and reach national and global markets.
“The thing about EXIM is not only do we provide the working capital for them, we provide insurance products, we have export guarantees so that we can ensure that the risk that they are taking is minimized,” she explained. “And that is where EXIM can step in to support America’s businesses right here in Delaware and the US.”
Congresswoman Lisa Blunt Rochester and representatives from World Trade Center Delaware joined Lewis in Monday’s conversation, highlighting the Delaware Division of Small Business and the Delaware Black Chamber of Commerce as local resources.
The local impact of the pandemic was another topic discussed.
During the pandemic, supply chain disruptions highlighted the need for the US to manufacture critical goods locally. EXIM is working to help make that possible.
Blunt Rochester says this would support businesses in Delaware in several ways. EXIM not only offers financing options tailored to small businesses, but by supporting some of Delaware’s larger industries, such as agricultural, bioscience, and pharmaceuticals, Delaware could strengthen its role in both the national and global marketplace.
“We have incredible small and large businesses here that could benefit from the resources of EXIM Bank, and that could help us unleash the competitive capacity we have right here in our own state for our entire country,” said Blunt Rochester.
She adds Delaware is strategically placed between some of the nations most prominent cities, and has access to several modes of transportation that give businesses a leg up in export potential.
More information on how EXIM can support local businesses in the First State can be found online on exim.gov.
