6 The Hampton Roads Messenger


Volume 8 Number 10


Wells Fargo to Lend $100 Billion to Small Businesses by 2018


Helix), Abbas Hashmi (founder of Green Card Capital), and Wong, and centered on what one has to do to take their business idea from


an


wish to a profitable operation.


The second panel discussion featured local New York City news anchor Joya Dass, Bibi Magazine founder Ayesha Hakki, The Cake Designer founder Parul Patel, and social media guru Adam Khan. They talked about the advantages and disadvantages


of


Nancy Wong, Wells Fargo Senior Vice President Asian Segment Manager, announces a $100 billion lending goal for small businesses by 2018.


BY DEEPAK CHITNIS NEW YORK -- Wells Fargo has


officially launched its newest initiative geared specifically at budding entrepreneurs looking to help their small businesses grow, entitled Wells Fargo Works for Small Business.


The initiative was unveiled this


past weekend, at the first-ever South Asian Young Women Entrepreneurs (SAY WE) conference that took place at the Condé Nast building in Times Square on May 17. Wells Fargo was a key sponsor of the SAY WE conference, helping to foster entre- preneurial spirit in the South Asian community.


business community is the first one to achieve entrepreneurial


“We know that the Asian small parity,” said


Nancy Wong, Senior Vice-President of Wells Fargo’s Asian Segment Manager. “We have seen the momentum grow in very specific regions, specifically the tri-state area [New York, New Jersey, Connecticut] and California.”


Wells Fargo, which has been the


largest small business lender for the last 11 years, also announced their goal of lending $100 billion to small business by 2018.


Wong said that this is an aggregate


goal for all businesses, South Asian and otherwise, but that Wells Fargo has resources meant specifically for Asian business owners.


“We host several financial


seminars and workshops, across the Wells Fargo footprint, that partner specifically with Asian chamber associations and trade associations,”


said Wong. “These guidance


to business community.”


Featuring a congregation of some of the best and brightest minds in the tri-state area’s South Asian entrepre- neurial scene, the SAY WE conference is intended to be the first leg of a three-part series of conferences that will continue in Houston and San Francisco later this year.


Rule!” and strives to help budding solidify our


commitment to providing resources and


the Asian small


using social media to promote small businesses, and how to avoid the common pitfalls associated with the


still-young but


incredibly powerful online marketing tool.


Keynote addresses were given by Aroon Shivdasani and Faisal Hoque. Shivdasani


is the founder of the


Indo-American Arts Council and the key organizers of the annual New York Indian Film Festival, while Hoque is a writer and entrepreneur who also


South Asian entrepreneurs, particularly women, by giving them the advice and resources they need to help establish and grow their small businesses.


by SAY WE founder Reema Rasool, who described


experience of


being at the organization’s inaugural conference as “surreal.”


Rasool explained that she founded


SAY WE as a way of providing young South Asian women with the advice and resources they needed, but often never have access to, in order to launch their entrepreneurial ventures. An entrepreneur herself, Rasool said that she wished these resources were available to her when she was getting started, and now wants to make sure that she can help those who are now starting to come up after her.


Two panel discussions were held,


one in the morning and one during the afternoon session. The first featured South Asian American entrepreneurs Pialy Aditya (co-founder of fashion site Mintbox), Sindhya V. Kalghatgi (founder of men’s grooming label


Get a jump on your competition... Advertise.


Call the Hampton Roads Messenger at 757-575-1863


The series is entitled “Raise, Rise, Your Future FROM PAGE 1


Saturday’s event was organized the


ways to cut back. "Start by reviewing recurring expenses — even small ones — and determine what you might be able to cut out, downgrade, or find a better deal on elsewhere," said Luke W. Reynolds, Chief of the FDIC's Outreach and Program Development Section.


Also try to pay less in interest.


For example, if you have multiple loans, pay off the ones with the highest interest rates first. And, regularly reviewing


your credit report and


correcting errors (see Refinancing Loans: Not Just for Mortgages) can result in considerable savings on loans and insurance policies. For more about saving money on loans, see Saving Money on a Mortgage, From Start to Finish and Refinancing Loans: Not Just for Mortgages.


Do I have an emergency savings fund? Financial


recommend that you have at


experts generally least


six months of living expenses in a federally insured product, such as a savings account or a certificate of deposit (CD). The idea is to help you withstand a major reduction in income, such as from a job loss, or to pay for a major, unexpected home or car repair. To build your "rainy day fund," consider a combination of regular, automated deposits and any "windfalls" you receive, perhaps from a tax refund or a bonus at work.


Am I saving money on a regular basis? "Automatic


transfers into


savings on a set schedule can help you save money before you spend it," said Bobbie Gray, an FDIC Supervisory Community Affairs Specialist.


intangible


June 2014


gave out and signed copies of his latest book, “Everything Connects.”


Hoque spoke at length about his


personal story, coming to the US from Bangladesh at age 17 and, eventually, dropping out of college in Minneapolis to start his career with Pitney Bowes in Connecticut. Today, he is the founder of Shadoka Ventures, and a number of other companies. Shadoka’s portfolio of companies – which specialize in R&D driven products, services, and thought leadership – accelerates individual and organizational sustainable growth.


Hoque warned prospective business owners that people should keep in mind the lows as much as the highs, citing his own ups and downs, and the successes and failures he experienced during his career.


“There is absolutely no substitute for passion and authenticity,” Hoque said in summation of his remarks, telling


future and current small


business owners that being true to themselves and passionate about their ideas are ultimately what will lead them to success in the long run.


Wells Fargo’s sponsorship of


SAY WE allowed for the conference to be free for attendees. Wells Fargo will continue to be a partner of SAY WE, as a sign of its increasing commitment to helping the Asian and South Asian American communities across the US.


The SAY WE conference series


will continue in Houston on June 14, and will conclude in San Francisco on August 9.


How much investment risk am


I willing to take? Investments such as stocks, bonds and mutual funds can produce higher returns than bank deposits over many years, but you could also lose some or all of that money. (Remember, nondeposit investments are not insured by the FDIC against loss.)


In general, the longer you plan to


keep money invested and the greater your tolerance for volatility, the more likely these investments can help you reach your targets.


Am I saving enough for


retirement? For many, the answer is "no" even when they think it is "yes." Options to save include workplace retirement plans, Individual Retirement Accounts (IRAs) offered by many banks and investment companies, and the U.S. Treasury Department's new "myRA" (MyRetirement


Account)


program. The myRA account is a simple,


safe and affordable retirement savings program that is backed by the U.S. government. Savers can open an account with as little as $25, there are no fees, the account will earn interest at a variable rate, and the investment is protected so the account balance will never go down. To learn more about myRA, go to www.treasurydirect.gov/ readysavegrow/start_saving/myra.htm.


"Many working people can save


considerably on their taxes through qualified retirement savings. And, if your employer offers a retirement savings program of any kind, find out whether it will match your investment contributions, and then don't lose out on any matches," Reynolds added.


To learn more about ways to


save, see resources from more than 20 federal agencies, including the FDIC, at www.mymoney.gov.


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16