Main Street
Main Street
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Goldman Sachs's Main Street Solution May Potentially Hold the Key to the Economic Recovery
Goldman Sachs announced Tuesday that it will be launching a $500 Million project aimed at boosting the economy by aiding those that have suffered the most through the recession. The initiative, known as "10,000 Small Businesses", will attempt to spur the growth of small businesses across the country and thereby create jobs to halt the rise of the already record-high unemployment rate.
The board heading this project will consist of an impressive list of experts, many of whom have had real world success. The panel will include Harvard professor Michael Porter, Goldman's largest current shareholder Warren Buffet, and Goldman Sachs CEO Lloyd Blankfein among others.
A project headed by such a list of true experts is good news for small business owners who have consistently been disappointed by the Government's efforts to aid "Main Street". For Goldman Sachs, the project seems to be motivated both by a feeling of guilt over its perceived part in causing the recession and a simple incentive to make more money in a healthier economy. The bank did, however, make nearly $3.2 billion last quarter.
Out of the total $500 million included in the plan, around $200 million will be put towards scholarships to community colleges and traditional universities across the country, while $300 million dollars is set aside for CDFIs that work primarily with lower income populations. CDFIs, or Community Development Financial Institutions, include banks, investment funds and credit unions that have been certified by the United States Treasury Department. Such institutions have also suffered due to the recession and often provide the only sources of business and personal loans in small communities.
The plan itself will consist not only of cheap loans, but also of purely philanthropic donations. Such a plan, if well targeted, could have a much more substantial effect per dollar than any government plan initiated so far. Money from a private industry, in this case a single, massive financial institution, targeted by real experts at the small businesses that form the backbone of the economy, does in theory look like an economically sound plan. As simple as this assumption may sound however, it begs the question - is relying on the philanthropic activities of Wall Street a real solution to small businesses, and more importantly, to America's economic woes?
About the Author
Xavier Leclair is the Director of Operations at GetFastCapital (provider of small business loans) and closely follows and provides consulting on the day-to-day micro and macro economic developments and how they affect the market and the financial industry.
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