Washington, D.C.

USPAACC utilizes $500,000 Open for Business Fund Grant from Wells Fargo to help Asian American businesses emerge stronger from the pandemic

The US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation (USPAACC) today outlined the steps it is utilizing for a $500,000 grant provided through Wells Fargo’s Open for Business Fund to further USPAACC’s ongoing mission of helping Asian American businesses emerge stronger from the pandemic.

Wells Fargo’s Open for Business Fund provides support for nonprofit organizations that serve diverse small businesses with a focus on African American, Latino, Asian American, American Indian, and Alaska Native entrepreneurs, among others. Through the program, Wells Fargo engages CDFIs and nonprofits to help businesses manage the economic impacts of COVID-19, providing needed assistance in access to capital, technical assistance, and long-term recovery and resiliency support.

USPAACC is utilizing the funds to provide targeted small businesses with specially designed technical assistance training and advisory services on financial literacy, management capacity, digital empowerment, marketing, and promotion strategies, and how to recruit, train and retain employees, respectively.

USPAACC is utilizing the funding to benefit small businesses through:

  • Offering USPAACC’s Business Leadership Series (BLS). BLS is a unique educational opportunity for business people to engage in meaningful discussion about business experiences to grow leadership skills and learn practical and positive impact-proven management practices and tools for future success.
    • Join us for USPAACC’s BLS series – https://uspaacc.com/programs/education/business-leadership-series – where we will dive into best practices and technical assistance to grow and protect your business. This series will cover a wide variety of topics from financial and strategic business planning to economic forecasting, tax preparation, obtaining minority business certifications and more, offering targeted support, and development resources designed to create and maintain a strong operating capacity for your organization;
  • Creation of YouTube education videos for small businesses to access technical assistance and conduct a social media campaign to create a survey and reach out to the hardest-hit small businesses;
  • Formation of a referral network to refer small businesses in need of other assistance to other organizations such as legal, finance, technology, and marketing support;
  • Supporting the business communities in Georgia and New York/New Jersey, two of the states where Asian American small businesses were hit first and hard by the pandemic and hate crimes; and
  • Support of the grassroots organization “BeChinatown” http://bechinatown.weebly.com. Located in San Francisco, USPAACC will support BeChinatown’s effort to bring assistance to neighborhoods in Sunset, Bayview, Visitacion Valley, and Richmond where moderate-and low-income immigrants are located. These new immigrants form small businesses to make a living and receive little attention and help. BeChinatown is preparing to conduct a survey in the community and identify specific needs for the fund to be used in supporting these small businesses.

In November, USPAACC National President and CEO Susan Au Allen hosted a Fireside Chat with Charlie Scharf, Wells Fargo CEO discussing the initiative. Their conversation is available at https://youtu.be/vvD4n4eS7Ro.

“Wells Fargo’s Open for Business Fund Grant Program is a terrific initiative laser-focused on making a direct impact helping diverse small businesses recover from COVID. I thank Wells Fargo, and CEO Charlie Scharf, for their generosity and continued commitment to assisting small businesses. USPAACC is using this grant funding to help educate, train, develop, and grow Pan Asian American/AAPI small businesses, especially those hit hardest by COVID-19, financially and personally. We look forward to continuing our over 19-year and productive partnership with Wells Fargo in supporting and strengthening our community’s small businesses that are so vital to America’s economy,” said Susan Au Allen, USPAACC National President and CEO.



Back to News Listing

About USPAACC

Founded in 1984 in the nation’s Capital, the US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation (USPAACC) is the most established and effective national nonprofit nonpartisan  organization representing all Asian American and Asian American-related groups in business, sciences, the arts, sports, education, public and community services. Our mission is to promote and propel economic growth and job creation by opening doors to business and professional opportunities for Asian Americans and their partners in corporations, government at the federal, state and local levels, and the small, minority and diverse business communities.  For 35 years, USPAACC has served and will continue to serve as the unified voice for equal opportunity in business for Asian Americans, as the gateway to corporate and government contracts, to Asian American suppliers, and information about Asian Americans and the Asia-Pacific and Indian Subcontinent markets.

Our signature annual thought-leadership programs include: College Hallmark Scholarship Program that began in 1989, One-on-One Prescheduled Business Matchmaking Meetings in 1998, Supplier Diversity & Procurement Leadership Caucus in 2004, Federal Contracting Town Hall Meetings in 2005, Fast 100 Asian American Businesses in 2008, Business Executive Coaching: ReadySetGrow in 2011, Chief Procurement Officers Forum in 2011, What’s Your Pitch Innovation Competitions in 2015, Chief Technology & Information Officers Forum in 2017, and Corporate Employee Business Resource Group Leadership Caucus in 2017.

Headquartered in Washington DC, USPAACC reaches Asian American businesses nationwide through regional chapters in California, Texas, New York, Georgia, Illinois and the Washington DC-Maryland-Virginia National Capital Area.

Press & Media Contact

202-735-3075

Other News

USPAACC National President and CEO Susan Au Allen Named Among Top 25 Change Leaders by DiversityPlus Magazine

Susan Au Allen, the National President and CEO of US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation (USPAACC), has been named by DiversityPlus Magazine as one of the Top Change Leaders of 2024.According to a statement released by the publication, the annual Top 25 Diversity Change Leaders roster recognizes “exceptional leaders who have made significant contributions to advancing diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) within their organizations and communities.”

USPAACC Recognizes 15 Corporations with the 2024 Supplier Diversity Champions Award

WASHINGTON (May 30, 2024)—Today the US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation (USPAACC) awarded 15 corporations with its second annual Supplier Diversity Champions Award.

USPAACC Announces CelebrASIAN 2024 Procurement + Business Conference, May 29-31, The Hotel at Avalon, Autograph Collection, Alpharetta, Ga.

The US Pan Asian American Chamber of Commerce Education Foundation (USPAACC) presents CelebrASIAN 2024 Procurement + Business Conference, the largest and longest-running business development conference for Pan Asian Americans.