Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) Affiliation and Benefits . . .

MBE AFFILIATION. To qualify as a Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) Affiliate, your company must represent a "selling interest" and meet the following criteria. Your company must:

Be certifiable as a Minority Business Enterprise. This means you must be a legally organized, profit-making organization; at least 51 percent owned by and under the day-to-day guidance and control of an ethnic minority group member; and, be independent of (not affiliated with) non-minority firms.

Report purchases that your firm makes from other minority-owned businesses (on a confidential basis) monthly to the TMSDC. (See MBE to MBE Purchasing Form)

Participate in and support the TMSDC’s activities.

Pay annual processing fee.

Minority business owners who are affiliates of the TMSDC benefit from an affiliation with an organization that stands for quality and progress in minority business development. This is accomplished through several key programs:

A highly respected certification process that recognizes excellence in business standards;

Access to the Business Consortium Fund, a source for working capital loans to certified minority businesses;

Business-building educational seminars, training and technical assistance;

Listing on the MBISYS, a national database of more than 15,000 certified minority suppliers;

Introductions to potential local, state and national corporate customers, specifically seeking to do business with minority firms.

Join the TMSDC and reap the benefits of affiliation. For more information and to start the application process, contact the Nashville State Office at (615) 259-4699.

Certified Minority Business Enterprise
To be certified as a Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) your company must represent a "selling interest" and meet the following criteria:

• Legally organized,
• Profit-making organization;
• Company shall be owned by an ethnic-minority that is a U.S. citizen. Ethnic-minorities are defined as:

• African-American or Black
• Asian-Indian American
• Asian-Pacific American
• Hispanic (non-European)
• Documented Native American India

• The principals must be U.S. citizen
• The ethnic-minority shall own, operated, and managed by no less than 51 percent of the firm. The applicant firm shall be an independent business, with an independent location and not a “sales arm” of a non-minority firm. The firm shall be an existing operation (not a start-up) with an existing contract or a firm that has an existing (documented) contract with one of the NMSDC Corporate Members. All equity investments shall be true and real, presented on the Balance Sheet (to Generally Accepted Accounting Principles) and documented and correspond with all other legal documents.
• The minority owners shall have complete and absolute control and be active in the day-to-day management and daily business operations. Complete control means the ethnic-minority owners shall be able to act independently of the non-minority owners. The ethnic-minority must demonstrate the “capabilities of managing” the firm. As a state charted entity (i.e., corporation, limited liability company or a limited partnership), the ethnic-minority(ies) must demonstrate the ability to manage and control the “chartered” entity, the other shareholders and/or the other unit holders. The ethnic-minority(ies) must have numerical control of the corporation’s Board of Directors and the limited liability company’s Board of Members. These operational and control facts must be documented in the corporate Bylaws, limited liability company’s Operating Agreement or the Limited Partnership’s Agreements.
• Report purchases that your firm makes from other minority-owned businesses (on a confidential basis) to the TMSDC.
• Participate in TMSDC activities.
• Pay annual re-certification fees of $200. 00
• Initial certification requires a non-refundable application fee of $100. 00
• The timeline for the process may run between 30 to 90 days to complete once all documents necessary are provided. If the documentation is incomplete or does not meet our requirements, your company will be contacted. Incomplete information significantly lengthens the entire process (i.e., your package goes to the bottom of the applicant pool). Therefore, please do not send an incomplete application.
• NMSDC requires all financial statements (Balance Sheet, Profit & Loss Statement, and Statement of Cash Flow) shall meet Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) of the Financial Accounting Standards Board.

For MBEs seeking initial certification, there is $100 non-refundable application processing fee. Upon final approval by the TMSDC Board of Directors, the remaining balance of $200 is due.

(Click Here for New MBE Certification Application)

MBE Re-certification and MBYSIS Form
Certified MBE shall make an application for renewal of certification on the appropriate forms at least 30 days prior to the certification expiration date (on your certificate). Certification may be terminated if application for renewal and all required documents are not received within 30 days of the request or expiration of certification. Complete the recertification application and forward to the TMSDC office. Previous year’s Federal Tax returns are required with your recertification** application. If your certification has expired, please call the TMSDC office (before paying) to verify if the council still has your file. The TMSDC no longer maintains expired files. They are removed and destroyed.

NOTE: Your MBE certification anniversary date is extremely important. Therefore, it is your responsibility to ensure you have your new certificate before your current one expires.

Please Note: The NMSDC requires all financial statements (Balance Sheet, Profit & Loss Statement, and Cash Flow Statement) to meet Generally Accepted Accounting Principles (GAAP) of the Financial Accounting Standards Board.

**The National Council (NMSDC) now requires MBEs to submit tax information in order to obtain renewal status. NMSDC indicates the following rationale:

MBEs often fail to provide current or accurate information on their gross annual sales. Since it is increasingly important to our corporate members to identify qualified MBEs and have accurate and updated information, NMSDC will require submission of tax forms as outlined below for each MBE.  

OPTION: You may have your Certified Public Accounting Firm (CPA) attest to the information on your renewal application as being accurate. This is required by NMSDC, and as an affiliate council, we must comply.

(Click Here for MBE Re-certification and MBYSIS Form)

MBE Reciprocal Services
The TMSDC Reciprocal Services is an annual process that must be started at your home council. Since the TMSDC does not prorate their certification or reciprocal services’ fees, we recommend all reciprocal services’ applicants start their home council recertification process no later than 60 to 90 days prior to your certification expiring. Upon receipt of your home council certificate, then apply for reciprocal services with the TMSDC. By coordinating the processes, we can ensure your TMSDC reciprocal recertification is timely. The expiration of the TMSDC Reciprocal Services’ certification, like all NMSDC regional councils’ Reciprocal Services, now matches your home council expiration. The Reciprocal Services Certification is not considered "Recertification". Please forward only a complete Reciprocal Services’ application to TMSDC office.

(Click Here for Reciprocal (Out of State) Certification Application)

The Business Consortium Fund, Inc.

The Business Consortium Fund, Inc. (BCF) is a minority business development company created by the National Minority Supplier Development Council.

The BCF provides contract financing to NMSDC certified minority businesses across America through a network of local participating banks and NMSDC affiliates.  The BCF is funded through several sources including corporations, state governments and foundations.

Purpose:

The Business Consortium Fund, Inc. (BCF) is the non-profit financial services program of the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC). The BCF provides access to capital exclusively to NMSDC certified ethnic minority-owned businesses which have supplier/vendor relationships with NMSDC national and regional corporate members and are experiencing difficulty obtaining financing though conventional channels on reasonable terms. Specific contracts and/or purchase orders are not required to obtain a BCF loan.

BCF Loan Guaranty/Loan Participation Program (LGPP)

A wide range of debt financing products are available though the BCF’s Loan Guaranty/Loan Participation Program (LGPP) including contract/purchase order financing, working capital, inventory, intermediate term, and equipment loans. LGPP loans are made by lenders subject to the BCF’s guarantee or participation and final approval. 

 The total amount of a LGPP loan is determined by the participating lender; however, the BCF’s  maximum exposure may not exceed $750,000 in a participation loan, or $562,500 on a guaranteed loan. 

Specialized Financing

The BCF also provides access to specialized loan programs and products through strategic alliances with other national financial services firms including equipment leasing, commercial and government accounts receivable, commercial real estate, and franchise financing.

Long-Term Debt/Equity Financing

Long-term debt and equity type financing is available through Triad Capital Corporation, the BCF’s wholly-owned federally licensed Specialized Small Business Investment Company (SSBIC).

Consulting Services

Professional consulting services are provided through BCF Business and Financial Advisory Services, Inc., a wholly-owned subsidiary of the BCF.  

For More Information :

Business Consortium Fund, Inc. (BCF)
305 Seventh Avenue, 20th Floor
New York, New York 10001
Telephone:  (212) 243-7360  
Fax:  (212) 243-7647
www.bcfcapital.com