Mississippi small business grants, loans and training funds (2026)

How Mississippi’s $86 million SSBCI share is split

Treasury approved Mississippi’s SSBCI plan on May 9, 2023, with a total allocation of $86,078,447 ⁠³. By December 31, 2025, Treasury had sent the state $55,150,876, and Mississippi reported $36,874,261 deployed, or 42.8% of the full allocation ⁠³. Treasury’s program list, current as of August 25, 2026, still shows all four Mississippi programs, with one contact for all of them: [email protected] ⁠².

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Allocations from MDA ⁠¹; the 80% guarantee ceiling from Treasury’s June 2023 approval ⁠⁴.

The loan fund is the piece most small businesses will touch. In April 2024, MDA approved Culleywood Capital, Renaissance Community Loan Fund and HOPE Enterprise Corporation, giving each $14.7 million. MDA asked them to put small, underserved and under-financed communities first ⁠⁵. You apply to the CDFI, not to MDA, and the CDFI sets the rate, term and collateral. A $14.7 million allocation does not mean $14.7 million is still available. Ask each CDFI how much SSBCI money it has left to lend.

The Small Business Loan Guarantee Program backs term loans and lines of credit that banks and other lenders make to new or existing Mississippi businesses ⁠¹. MDA has not posted minimum or maximum loan sizes for the current round, so ask MDA or your lender for the limits before you build a loan request around the guarantee.

InvestMS: equity that follows a lead investor

InvestMS for Startups puts SSBCI money into Mississippi companies from pre-seed through Series A. First checks run from $50,000 to $1 million, with capital held back for follow-on rounds ⁠⁶. MDA describes two deal sizes. Larger deals of up to $3 million can get an SSBCI match of up to $1 million, and the rest of the fund makes matches of up to $500,000. InvestMS never leads a round ⁠¹.

The rules that trip founders up:

• A committed outside investor is required. You need at least one investor who has committed at least $50,000 and has not yet closed ⁠⁶.
• Timing matters. InvestMS can match only money that closes within a 90-day window. It asks you to meet with its team before you sign and receive the lead investor’s money ⁠⁶.
• “Mississippi-based” is defined. You must be registered with the Mississippi Secretary of State and have a working physical office here. You also need one of three things in Mississippi: your headquarters, most of your C-suite, or most of your employees ⁠⁶.
• Expect an observer, not a director. InvestMS takes a non-voting board observer seat ⁠⁶.

Applications are reviewed on a rolling basis with no deadline. A typical investment takes about 90 days ⁠⁶. Equity is not a grant: you give up part of the company.

MDA’s own loan programs for minority-owned and small firms

MDA’s Minority and Small Business Development Division lists six programs: the Capital Access Contract Loan Program, the Small Business Loan Guaranty Program, the Small Business and Existing Forestry Industry Loan Program, the Minority Surety Bond Guaranty Program, the Minority Business Micro Loan Program (maximum $35,000) and the Minority Business Enterprise (MBE) Loan Program ⁠⁷. All are repayable. The detailed fact sheets MDA links are dated April 2015, so ask MDA to confirm current rates before you apply.

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Sources: MBE sheet ⁠⁸; Capital Access Contract sheet ⁠⁹.

MBE and micro loans are for socially and economically disadvantaged minority-owned and women-owned manufacturers, warehouses, distribution centers and retailers. The owner’s net worth, not counting their home and their equity in the business, cannot exceed $500,000. Planning and Development Districts, small business investment corporations and community development corporations make the loans together with MDA ⁠⁸. The Capital Access Contract loan uses your public contract as collateral and is limited to three loans per borrower ⁠⁹. To get certified as a minority- or woman-owned business, contact the division at 601-359-3448 or [email protected] ⁠⁸.

Training money flows through AccelerateMS and the community colleges

Two state funds pay for employer training in Mississippi. AccelerateMS, the state workforce office, directs them, and community colleges deliver most of the training.

Workforce Enhancement Training (WET) Fund. An average of $13,438,597 a year went to WET-funded training in fiscal 2021 through 2023. About 259 employers a year sent workers, mostly in manufacturing and health care ⁠¹¹. The training is delivered by your local community college, so the money never reaches your bank account. Start with the college’s workforce office.

Mississippi Works Fund. Under AccelerateMS’s current MS Works Fund rules, the employer does not apply. A community college, public university or Planning and Development District applies on behalf of a “benefitting business” ⁠¹⁰. That business must be for-profit and either in operation in Mississippi for at least one year or recruited by MDA. It must create or enhance at least 10 net full-time, permanent jobs, and it cannot have had a layoff in the past 120 days ⁠¹⁰. Gaming, cannabis and retail businesses are excluded. Trainee wages and production equipment cannot be paid for, and projects run for up to 36 months ⁠¹⁰. Applications are accepted year-round, starting with a pre-application ⁠¹⁰. Most very small businesses will not meet the 10-job threshold.

Federal research, export and Delta region programs

MS-FAST Phase 0 (grant). Innovate Mississippi and the University of Southern Mississippi’s Office of Innovation Management pay up to $3,000 toward preparing a federal SBIR or STTR Phase I or II proposal. The business must be registered with the Mississippi Secretary of State and have 500 or fewer employees. Proposals are due at least 30 days before the federal deadline, and applicants hear within 20 days ⁠¹². Mississippi has no state program that matches SBIR/STTR awards after you win. Phase 0 money only helps you apply.

Mississippi STEP (reimbursement grant). MDA’s International Trade Office uses SBA State Trade Expansion Program funds for state-led trade missions. It reimburses up to 50% of eligible businesses’ travel costs and provides free translation, pre-arranged buyer meetings and transportation help ⁠¹³. SBA awarded MDA $600,000 for the 2022 cycle. MDA reports STEP has helped more than 200 companies since 2019, with over $77 million in actual and projected sales ⁠¹³. MDA does not post a single annual application window, so call the International Trade Office at 601-359-3155 about upcoming missions.

Delta Regional Authority SEDAP (grant to public and nonprofit bodies). DRA’s 2026 round offered about $16,619,000 across eight states, with 15.53% earmarked for Mississippi. Most awards ran $50,000 to $500,000, and proposals were due July 31, 2026 ⁠¹⁵. Only governments, nonprofits, economic development organizations, workforce boards, colleges and tribes may apply, not individual businesses ⁠¹⁵. A Delta business benefits only through a project its town or development district sponsors.

Step by step: getting Mississippi capital in the right order

1. Book a free Mississippi SBDC session

   Register online or call 1-800-725-7232. One-on-one counseling is free and confidential; some workshops carry a small fee ⁠¹⁴. The SBDC also runs the state’s SSBCI technical assistance program, which helps owners get ready to apply for a loan ⁠¹.

2. Gather a lender-ready package

   Bring recent business and personal tax returns (or projections for a startup), year-to-date financial statements, a business plan with a use-of-funds budget, your Secretary of State registration and any public contracts you hold.

3. Apply to a participating CDFI first if banks have turned you down

   Contact Culleywood Capital, Renaissance Community Loan Fund or HOPE Enterprise Corporation. Ask whether your loan can be funded from the Mississippi CDFI Small Business Loan Fund ⁠⁵.

4. Ask your bank about the state guarantee

   If a bank likes your business but needs more security, ask it to request a Small Business Loan Guarantee from MDA (601-359-3552, [email protected]). The guarantee covers up to 80% of the loan ⁠⁴⁠⁷.

5. Minority- and women-owned firms: get certified, then apply for MBE or micro loans

   Get certified through MDA’s division (601-359-3448). Then apply through MDA and your local Planning and Development District ⁠⁸.

6. Startups raising equity: file the InvestMS intake before closing

   Line up a lead investor committing at least $50,000. Submit the InvestMS intake form and wait for InvestMS to confirm before you sign closing documents, or the match can fail ⁠⁶.

7. Tech firms: request MS-FAST Phase 0 at least 30 days before the SBIR deadline

   If you are not selected, you can apply again for the next solicitation, since the program is open year-round ⁠¹².

8. Hiring 10 or more: talk to the community college about training

   The college’s workforce office can bring the project to AccelerateMS. Ask before training starts, because MS Works projects start with a pre-application ⁠¹⁰.

If a CDFI or bank declines you, the decision is the lender’s credit judgment. Ask for the reasons in writing, fix what you can with your SBDC counselor and try another participating CDFI. For other Mississippi assistance, see the Mississippi overview, or compare states on the small business grants hub.