EQUITY FUND

The Equity Fund program provides $5,000 grants, continued business education and networking to BIPOC LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs and small business owners.

Program Timeline

The 2025 Equity Fund application will open Monday, August 11th. Application are due by Monday, September 22nd at 5pm Central Standard Time.

Am I Eligible to Apply?

Eligibility Requirements

Grant-seekers must meet all of the following criteria to apply: 

  • You identify as LGBTQ+ 

  • You identify as Black, Indigenous, or a Person of Color. 

  • Your business is located in Minneapolis-St. Paul Metro area

  • Your business has been in operation for at least one year. 

  • The annual gross revenue of your business for your most recently completed fiscal year was $250,000 or less. 

  • Your business has 20 or fewer employees. 

Program Obligations

If awarded a grant, you must agree to the following conditions: 

  • You agree to only use grant funds for the business purposes outlined in your proposal. Personal uses of funds are not allowed.

  •  You agree to provide PFund Foundation with the paperwork necessary to process grant payments (signed grant agreement, IRS W9 form, and your business's logo). 

  • You agree to complete an online survey and produce a report on how you used grant funds at the conclusion of the grant period.

  • You agree to attend 80% of the in-person cohort meetings over the course of the program. (6 meetings total)

Download the Equity Fund Program and Application Guide:

Join us for a virtual info session to learn more about the Equity Fund program

Monday, August 18th 2025 at 12pm central time

Equity Fund grants are made possible by:

Minneapolis Foundation

Hugh J. Anderson

F.R. Bigelow Foundation

Stephen Walker

And individual donors like you

2024-2025 Equity Fund Grant Recipients

2023-2024 Equity Fund Grant Recipients

Impact

Cover page of Equity Fund 2024 Progress Report

To learn more about the work completed by the Equity Fund in 2024, please download our program progress report (pdf).

Grantee Spotlight:

Meet Belo Miguel Cipriani

Belo Miguel Cipriani is a 2022-23 Equity Fund grant recipient. Cipriani is the founder of Oleb Media, a digital inclusion consulting firm in Minneapolis that specializes in accessibility testing and remediations for websites and other digital spaces. Read more about Cipriani’s story and the work he does via Oleb Media here.