Global investment firm Goldman Sachs will begin today providing training to 33 small business owners across Arkansas through its 10,000 Small Businesses initiative.
Goldman Sachs is working with the University of Arkansas-Pulaski Technical College to provide education and training. Goldman Sachs will provide $20 million to Hope Enterprise Corporation, a community development financial institution based in Jackson, Mississippi, to support the program throughout the South and in Arkansas.
Goldman Sachs previously provided education and training to 22 small business owners in Arkansas in 2023.
The program is part of a $100 million expansion of the investment bank’s 10,000 Small Businesses program, which has supported more than 17,000 businesses over the past 15 years. The expansion targets rural small business owners in 20 states over five years, Goldman Sachs said in a news release.
The program focuses on “empowering and supporting entrepreneurs by providing a comprehensive business education program and access to capital,” the release said.
Those expected to attend today’s welcome event at the Robinson Center in downtown Little Rock were:
- Asahi Pompey, global head of corporate engagement and chair of the urban investment group at Goldman Sachs
- Anne Wellde, national director of the 10,000 Small Businesses program; and
- Ryan Byrd, owner of Just Peachy in Little Rock and a graduate of the 10,000 Small Businesses program.
Source: arkansasbusiness.com
