Reshape Tomorrow: More Opportunity for More People
When small businesses are unable to access capital, great opportunities go unrealized. It’s a loss for financial providers and for the business owners seeking to provide for themselves and their communities.
We believe that access to basic knowledge about credit — and to the capital required to set the goals of small business owners in motion — can go a long way toward spurring economic growth in communities around the world. Also, many lenders need better information about these borrowers in order to make confident decisions. In 2017, we saw an opportunity to use our core business expertise and resources to bring more people into the financial circle.
The result is Reshape Tomorrow, a financial empowerment initiative dedicated to helping people overcome the challenges of growing a small business.
Reshape Tomorrow helps small business owners — especially women and members of untapped groups in developing markets — access vital information about the credit process. To scale our impact, we’re partnering with organizations around the world to provide financial and business management courses in targeted areas. We’ll also help small and growing businesses connect to sources of financing.
Reshape Tomorrow will employ a number of technology tools to help small businesses thrive, including the MARQTM portal and CashFlowTool.com (formerly known as Flight), an application launched in 2018 by our partner Finagraph. (See related stories on pages 18 and 21 –22.) These tools, when paired with financial education and support services, can help close the opportunity gap.
One of our first global partners in Reshape Tomorrow is The Fore, a UK nonprofit that helps early-stage charities and social enterprises secure funding and develop more effective business models. In 2018, we are inviting even more nonprofits to submit proposals for Reshape Tomorrow programs that support business development, financial empowerment and other goals of this initiative.
We believe that beyond providing access to practical tools and resources, Reshape Tomorrow will open opportunities for Moody’s leaders to advocate for the needs of small business owners and the importance of educating people about effective financial management and credit.
Read our recent announcement here "Moody’s Selects Partners for Reshape Tomorrow, Aiming to Help Small Businesses Thrive"
