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

Where Battle Born Growth’s money is parked

Most of Nevada’s SSBCI money goes to equity, not lending. That matters if you are a Main Street business hoping for a loan.

GOED reported that $25 million of the first phase went to venture capital, mostly battery, manufacturing and AI startups ⁠².

A bank loan with the state as a silent partner

The Nevada Loan Participation Program (LPP) is a repayable loan. Your bank or credit union makes and services it, and NBBGEI buys a slice. The usual slice is 10% to 30% of the loan, and it can reach 49%. The state’s share is capped at $5 million per deal ⁠¹, and the whole credit facility can total up to $20 million ⁠³. Because the state’s portion carries a lower interest rate, your blended cost can come down ⁠³.

To qualify, a business needs 500 or fewer employees, must be based in Nevada and must be seeking new financing. Eligible uses include equipment, machinery, inventory, owner-occupied commercial real estate, receivables and revolving lines of credit, and C-PACE-eligible loans. The program will not finance business acquisitions or passive real estate investment, and it allows only limited refinancing or cash-out ⁠³. Treasury notes a special focus on manufacturers buying automation equipment, software and training for Industry 4.0 ⁠¹.

Only the lenders on NBBGEI’s list can enroll a loan: America First Credit Union (formerly Meadows Bank), GBank, GenuBank, Heritage Bank, Nevada State Bank, Plumas Bank and WaFd Bank. Rural Nevada Development Corporation (RNDC) is the rural CDFI partner. Access Capital and RIZE are listed as CDFI relationships still coming online ⁠⁵.

When the loan is short on collateral

The Collateral Support Program (CSP) is also tied to a repayable loan. If the bank likes your cash flow but your assets don’t cover the loan, NBBGEI places cash in an account at that bank, pledged as extra collateral. It covers up to 80% of the shortfall, up to $5 million per transaction, on loans up to $20 million ⁠⁴. Treasury describes the target as loans of $5 million or less ⁠¹. Eligible financing includes equipment, machinery and inventory loans, owner-occupied commercial real estate construction, receivables revolvers and SBA 504 bridge loans ⁠⁴. Your lender asks for it during underwriting, not you ⁠⁴.

Loans under $250,000: now mainly a rural channel

The Battle Born Growth Microloan program was the piece aimed at very small firms. It covered businesses with no more than 100 full-time employees and less than $5 million in revenue, and it could fund startup costs, working capital and franchise fees. Treasury now says it is no longer accepting new loan applications ⁠¹. NBBGEI’s loan page still lists a $20,000 to $250,000 tier through CDFIs and sends rural borrowers to RNDC ⁠³. In July 2026, GOED announced three RNDC-made Battle Born Growth loans of up to $250,000 each, to businesses in Spring Creek, Winnemucca and Ely ⁠⁶. In Las Vegas or Reno, ask the SBDC which CDFI channel is active before you count on a small SSBCI loan.

Battle Born Venture: equity for tech startups with a lead investor

Battle Born Venture buys an ownership stake in your company. Treasury caps it at $1 million per company and requires at least a 1:1 match from private lead investors ⁠¹. Its own site describes deals of $200,000 to $20 million in total size, with no more than $500,000 from the program in a first round. Companies must be C-corps or S-corps (no LLCs) with a Nevada business license and address. They generally need recurring revenue, unless they are university spinouts, Knowledge Fund affiliates or deep-tech firms holding active SBIR/STTR awards. Gambling, alcohol, cannabis, firearms and real estate are excluded, and the site warns of slower responses because of high volume ⁠⁷.

Training and hiring money goes to colleges and EmployNV hubs

WINN (Workforce Innovations for a New Nevada) is GOED’s training grant, but a business cannot apply for it. The College of Southern Nevada, Great Basin College, Truckee Meadows Community College and Western Nevada College apply, and employers join as industry partners who help shape the program ⁠⁸. Colleges can send a pre-application at any time. The full application is due 30 days before the GOED Board meeting that will vote on it, and the Executive Director can approve requests under $100,000. Currently funded programs range from $155,000 to $1,770,000, in fields such as advanced manufacturing, diesel and mining, logistics, welding and battery recycling ⁠⁸. If you need a trained pipeline, call the workforce office at your nearest college.

EmployNV Business Hub incentives pay employers directly. In Southern Nevada, the hub, funded through DETR and Workforce Connections, pays $2,000 once a new hire has been retained for 120 days. On-the-job training reimbursements can be larger, depending on the job ⁠⁹. Contact (702) 486-0129 or [email protected] ⁠⁹.

Export and SBIR grants: small, reimbursed afterward, and conditional

GOED’s Nevada Export Grant Programs are funded in part by SBA’s State Trade Expansion Program (STEP). Every award is reimbursed after the activity, and a business can receive one export grant per federal fiscal year ⁠¹⁰. Under the guidelines for applications after December 1, 2023, the Nevada Goods Grant pays up to $5,000 for international trade show booth space and design (travel excluded). The US Commercial Service Grant pays up to $2,500 for U.S. Commerce Department services such as Gold Key matchmaking ⁠¹⁰. GOED also lists an ExportEd Grant and a Trade Mission Assistance Grant ⁠¹¹.

Applicants must be for-profit and SBA-size small, have significant Nevada operations and at least one year of business licensing, and export goods with at least 51% U.S. content ⁠¹⁰⁠¹¹. Businesses earning more than one-third of revenue from legal gambling are excluded, and so are firms that already received two STEP grants anywhere. Claims are due within 15 days after the activity, and GOED typically pays within a month ⁠¹⁰. GOED’s application form has no deadline ⁠¹¹, and Nevada is not in SBA’s STEP awardee directory for FY2023 or FY2024 ⁠¹². Email [email protected] to confirm money is available before you book a booth ⁠¹¹.

For technology firms, Nevada has no state program that matches federal SBIR/STTR awards. The closest is InnovateNV, run with UNLV, UNR’s SAGE, StartUpNV and SBA funding. Its Phase 0 Microgrants pay up to $5,000 toward proposal costs for applicants who have submitted SBIR/STTR proposals, with preference for InnovateNV cohort members ⁠¹³.

Las Vegas redevelopment-area rebates

The City of Las Vegas offers rebates, not upfront grants, inside its redevelopment areas. In January 2026 it raised the Commercial Visual Improvement Program maximum from $25,000 to $50,000, and in the Historic Westside a match may not be required. The Business Security Program reimburses up to $5,000 for security upgrades. The new Tenant Improvement Program rebates up to 10% of interior build-out costs: up to $50,000 for 2,500 to 4,999 square feet or $95,000 for 5,000 or more. It requires a five-year lease and 10 verifiable jobs ⁠¹⁵.

Getting financed in Nevada, step by step

1. Start with the Nevada SBDC

   Hosted by UNR’s College of Business, it gives free, confidential advising at 12 locations. Its SSBCI Technical Assistance Program covers credit repair, financial projections and loan-application prep at no cost ⁠¹⁴. Register online or call (800) 240-7094, and take the Capital Readiness Assessment.

2. Gather lender-ready documents

   Bring financial statements and cash-flow projections (the SBDC helps prepare both ⁠¹⁴), your Nevada business license and a list of what the loan will pay for. The LPP finances new projects and underwriting, not business acquisitions ⁠³.

3. Apply at a participating lender and say “SSBCI.”

   Choose one of the seven listed banks and credit unions ⁠⁵. NBBGEI asks borrowers to mention the SSBCI program and have the lender contact it ⁠³. If collateral is short, ask the lender about the Collateral Support Program ⁠⁴.

4. Rural borrowers needing under $250,000: call RNDC

   Its office is in Ely, and it has made Battle Born Growth loans in Elko, Humboldt and White Pine counties ⁠⁶.

5. Startups with a lead investor: apply to Battle Born Venture

   Take its fit quiz and confirm you are a C-corp or S-corp first ⁠⁷.

6. Before hiring, call an EmployNV Business Hub

   Ask about on-the-job training reimbursement before the new employee starts, since the $2,000 incentive depends on 120 days of retention ⁠⁹.

7. Exporters: get GOED’s written OK before spending

   Unapproved costs may not be reimbursed, and claims are due 15 days after the event ⁠¹⁰.

8. If a lender says no, try another one

   SSBCI enrollment is the lender’s credit decision, so another participating lender may say yes. Ask the SBDC adviser what to fix first ⁠¹⁴.

For other Nevada help, see the Nevada overview, or compare states on the small business grants hub.