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New Community Transformation Fund
The New Community Transformation Fund (NCTF) launched in Grand Rapids, Michigan, through a partnership with economic development organization The Right Place,...
New Community Transformation Fund
The New Community Transformation Fund (NCTF) launched in Grand Rapids, Michigan, through a partnership with economic development organization The Right Place, aiming to add demographic growth and broader business ownership in the city. The fund was conceived roughly four years before its public operations began, with founding anchor investors that include Mercantile Bank of Michigan and Corewell Health, whose president and CEO Tina Freese Decker publicly endorsed the vehicle's mandate to increase ethnic and racial diversity in West Michigan entrepreneurship. NCTF operates as a $25 million venture capital fund, investing in scalable early- to mid-stage companies and transitioning succession businesses owned or operated by leaders of color. The mandate is geographically concentrated in West Michigan, specifically the Grand Rapids metropolitan area, and spans multiple industries without a published sector-exclusion list. The fund structure accepts outside institutional and corporate limited partners, as demonstrated by the named commitments from Mercantile Bank and Corewell Health, positioning NCTF as a community-anchored vehicle rather than a single-family or captive corporate fund. Confirmed portfolio companies or specific deal names are not publicly disclosed. The fund lists no named investment professionals or portfolio managers on its website; Robert B. Kaminski, CEO of Mercantile Bank, and Tina Freese Decker of Corewell Health are cited as early limited-partner voices rather than NCTF executives. No team size, additional office locations, philanthropic vehicles, or co-investor club memberships are publicly available. The fund's sole documented geographic footprint is Grand Rapids, Michigan. NCTF's structural differentiator lies in its origination model: it is a place-based, corporate- and institution-backed fund explicitly designed to expand racial diversity in business ownership within a single mid-sized American metro. Unlike broad ESG or impact vehicles, NCTF ties its deployment exclusively to West Michigan and to founder demographics, creating a constrained pipeline that relies on local corporate partnerships and economic-development infrastructure for deal flow and LP support.
General information
Firm type
Private Equity
Year founded
2020
AUM
Undisclosed
Location
Region
North America
Country
United States
City
Grand Rapids
Corporate office
Grand Rapids, MI, United States
Frequently asked questions
Who runs investment decisions at New Community Transformation Fund?
NCTF does not publicly name a chief investment officer, managing partner, or dedicated investment committee on its website or in available materials. The fund's governance and decision-making structure are not disclosed. Early limited partner endorsements from Mercantile Bank CEO Robert B. Kaminski and Corewell Health CEO Tina Freese Decker suggest institutional oversight, but no internal team roster or delegated investment authority is published.
How does New Community Transformation Fund source proprietary deal flow?
NCTF sources companies through West Michigan's local economic development network, specifically via its founding partnership with The Right Place, the region's primary economic development organization. The fund's explicit mandate — companies owned or operated by business leaders of color in West Michigan — functions as a filter that narrows the pipeline to a specific demographic and geographic profile, relying on community relationships and corporate partner referrals rather than broad-market origination.
Is New Community Transformation Fund structured as a venture firm, a family office, or a corporate vehicle?
NCTF is structured as a venture capital fund that accepts external institutional and corporate limited partners. It is not a single-family office, multi-family office, or captive corporate balance-sheet vehicle. Named LPs include Mercantile Bank of Michigan and Corewell Health, both Grand Rapids-based institutions, indicating a community-syndicated fund structure rather than a proprietary capital pool.
Does New Community Transformation Fund participate in fund commitments or only direct deals?
Based on the firm's published description, NCTF invests directly in scalable early- to mid-stage operating companies and transitioning succession businesses within West Michigan. There is no indication that the fund makes commitments to external fund vehicles or acts as a limited partner in other funds.
What investment stages does New Community Transformation Fund typically target?
The firm's website states it works with scalable, early- to mid-stage businesses, including transitioning succession companies. Seed-stage, startup, and succession-transition investments are each mentioned, but no specific check-size range, revenue threshold, or stage gate is disclosed.
Which sectors does New Community Transformation Fund explicitly avoid?
No exclusion list is published. The fund states it invests in companies across various industries specific to the West Michigan region without naming sectors it will not consider.
Does New Community Transformation Fund maintain philanthropic structures, and how are they separated?
There is no public disclosure of a separate philanthropic foundation, donor-advised fund, or charitable trust affiliated with NCTF. The fund operates as a for-profit venture capital vehicle, though its mission aligns with certain community-development and economic-inclusion objectives shared by its institutional limited partners.
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