Finance Friendly

The Opportunity

America's creative economy contributes nearly $1.2 trillion (4.2%) to national GDP and over 5.4 million jobs — growing at nearly twice the rate of national GDP.

Yet access to capital remains one of the most persistent barriers to growth for creative businesses. Whether it's a small business owner navigating inconsistent cash flows, a growth company scaling into new markets, or an arts organization facing millions in facility improvement costs — innovative financial instruments tailored to creative industries remain limited.

Most community lenders don't have the tools, data, or relationships to serve this massive market. CEFN helps allocators see — and capture — this opportunity.

Creative Economy Data

NAICS Code Framework

Our tailored data framework identifying 97+ NAICS codes that define the creative economy, the foundation for portfolio assessment and market opportunity analysis.

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Creative Finance Friendly

We certify capital allocators as Creative Finance Friendly — working in partnership with the California State Treasurer's Office and Washington Department of Commerce.

Specifically, CEFN helps certified partners:

  • Expand availability of capital designed to meet creative businesses' and working artists' unique needs
  • Capture market opportunities in the creative economy through portfolio assessment and data analysis
  • Develop CRA-aligned impact strategy with creative sector marketing and community engagement
  • Gain market leadership as experts in financing the creative economy

For Allocators

Certification Overview

Everything you need to know about Creative Finance Friendly certification: executive education, portfolio deep dive, CRA-aligned strategy, and the impact dashboards that come with it.

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Tools & Frameworks for Allocators

Certified partners get dedicated tools to track creative sector lending and measure community impact:

Capital Navigator Impact Dashboard

Track loan origination, applications, approvals, repayment rates, ROI, community impact and CRA-aligned goals. Your creative economy portfolio at a glance — from incoming leads to portfolio health.

Capital Navigator Impact Dashboard showing creative economy portfolio, loan leads, and portfolio health

Become Creative Finance Friendly

Sign up to learn more about the Creative Finance Friendly designation and other ways we can partner together to lead in financing the creative economy.