Ascendus, MetLife Foundation and Urban Institute to spotlight small-business capital and mobility

Ascendus will host a Sept. 16 event in New York and online with MetLife Foundation and the Urban Institute to discuss what happens after small business owners reach capital. The program will also highlight early findings from research on Ascendus' Get Ready lending and coaching model, which links tiny lines of credit with financial coaching and later access to larger capital.

Why it matters: - Small-business credit access is only part of the mobility picture. The event is aimed at the harder question of whether reaching capital actually helps owners move up. - The discussion centers on borrowers who are often screened out of mainstream lending because of lower credit scores or lower incomes. - The research could shape how CDFIs, funders and policymakers think about small-dollar lending models that pair capital with coaching.

What happened: - Ascendus will convene Getting Ready to Grow: How Small Capital Drives Economic Mobility on Wednesday, Sept. 16, 2026. - MetLife Foundation and the Urban Institute are co-hosts. - The session runs from 8:30 to 10:00 a.m. Eastern Time at MetLife, 200 Park Avenue, New York, and online. - The event is open to funders, CDFI practitioners, researchers and policy partners. - Registration and the full media kit are available at Ascendus. - Press inquiries and interview requests go to getready@ascendus.org.

The details: - Tia Hodges of MetLife Foundation will moderate. - Panelists include Paul Quintero and Neysa Cruceta of Ascendus, Brett Theodos of the Urban Institute, and a Get Ready borrower. - Get Ready launched in 2023 with support from MetLife Foundation. - The program pairs a $500 revolving line of credit with one-on-one financial coaching. - Borrowers can graduate to a $5,000 line after three months of on-time repayment. - Personal credit score is not an eligibility requirement. - The Urban Institute published Building Credit for Small Business Owners: A Case Study of the Get Ready Program in October 2025. - The study was written by Brett Theodos and Amanda Hermans. - The research examined access and implementation across 174 borrowers. - The study combined program data, pre-loan credit data and interviews. - The average incoming borrower credit score was 571, below the threshold many CDFI lenders typically use. - As of March 2025, 76% of accounts were in active good standing or had closed with obligations met. - Among borrowers evaluated for an increase, 41% moved to the $5,000 line or beyond. - Across all 174 borrowers, 35% moved to the $5,000 line or beyond. - Thirty-two percent of borrowers had household incomes under $30,000, compared with a national median household income of $78,538 in 2023. - Six borrowers moved beyond the program into larger, traditional business loans with Ascendus. - Part One of the research looks at access and implementation and does not measure changes in borrowers' credit scores. - The Urban Institute expects a second part of the research in December 2026.

Between the lines: - The setup reflects a broader shift in the CDFI sector toward measuring not just who gets capital, but what happens after the first loan. - The Get Ready model is designed to reduce common barriers by pairing small credit with coaching and by not requiring a personal credit score up front. - The early results suggest that some borrowers can use a small entry point to build repayment history and move into larger financing. - The program's outcomes also show that credit access can be paired with a path toward traditional lending, not just short-term relief.

What's next: - The Sept. 16 event will bring together practitioners, researchers and funders to discuss the findings and the model's broader implications. - The second Urban Institute research release in December 2026 should add more evidence on the program. - Ascendus is also likely to use the event to continue promoting Get Ready as a pathway from small capital to larger business financing.

The bottom line: - Ascendus and its partners are trying to answer a bigger question than loan approval: whether small, coached capital can help overlooked entrepreneurs build lasting economic mobility.