A native Costa Rican, Marco Pérez champions small businesses and has extensive experience helping owners build sustainable, successful companies. As a member of the first BII Cohort in 2020 he and his Chattanoogan colleagues co-founded the Capital Impact Pilot Fund and he has worked to expand access to patient, non-extractive capital for small businesses through the Accelerator Loan Fund held at the local Community Foundation. Marco and his team at Prospera Strategies develop and facilitate courses and provide coaching in both English and Spanish to small businesses for various organizations focusing on Women, Latino and Black populations.