Growth Capital Corporation
Nonprofit profile at a glance
- EIN
- 341567708
- IRS 990 coverage
- 2010–2025
- Forms available
- Form 990 2025
- Location
- Cleveland, OH, USA
- Phone
- 2165922332
- Rating
- 79
- Verdict
- SUPPORTED
- Rating confidence
- Moderate
Reported finances
- Revenue
- $2,059,430
- Expenses
- $1,890,321
- Assets
- $3,732,333
- Liabilities
- $922,694
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Amounts in USD.
Leadership & pay
12 people listed
Executive titles in this filing
- JOHN KROPF (PRESIDENT/EX)
Highest reported compensation
- JOHN KROPF (PRESIDENT/EX): $351,965 total reported compensation
- JUAN HERNANDEZ (BUSINESS DEV): $184,787 total reported compensation
- JEFFREY SOZIO (SBA LOAN OFF): $135,442 total reported compensation
Source: IRS Form 990. Selected filing: tax year 2025. Names and roles reflect this filing, not necessarily current officeholders.
Overview
Mission
To provide financing assistance to area businesses as part of an overall mission to foster economic growth and job creation in northeast Ohio.
What it reported doing in 2025
During fiscal year 2025, the organization exceeded its annual loan production goal for the first time in three fiscal years. A total of 43 loans were approved, consisting of 22 sba 504 loans and 21 sba 7(a) loans, representing 103% of the annual production goal and reflecting a balanced mix of lending activity across programs. Loan production increased significantly compared to the prior year, with approved loan volume increasing by more than 42% based on the number of loans approved. The organization approved approximately 22.7 million in financing during the fiscal year, including 19.4 million through the sba 504 program and 3.3 million through the sba 7(a) program. While total approved loan dollars reached approximately 82% of the annual dollar- volume goal, average loan size declined due to a greater number of smaller loans. Management believes these loans continue to support the organization's mission of providing growth capital to small businesses and underserved borrowers. During fiscal year 2025, 32 loans closed, including 18 sba 504 loans totaling approximately 14.7 million and 14 sba 7(a) loans totaling approximately 2.7 million. Loan closings exceeded the annual production goal and contributed positively to operating results. The organization's loan portfolio grew by approximately 10.9 million during the fiscal year. Portfolio growth benefited from the funding of several larger sba 504 loans and a slower pace of loan payoffs compared to prior periods. Portfolio growth exceeded established annual targets and represented the strongest year-end growth achieved in recent years. The lending environment continued to be affected by prevailing interest rates. However, stabilization of the 10-year treasury rate supported sba 504 lending activity, while reductions in interest rates during the year are expected to provide payment relief to certain borrowers and support future portfolio performance. The organization also experienced improvements in portfolio quality during fiscal year 2025. The sba 504 stressed loan rate declined from 20.49% at the beginning of the fiscal year to 6.32% at year-end, primarily due to proactive workout efforts and sba-approved repayment arrangements. The sba 7(a) stressed loan rate decreased from 6.80% to 2.53% during the same period. In addition, the organization maintained a strong loan loss reserve position, which management believes provides meaningful protection against credit risk. The organization's mission-related lending results remained strong during fiscal year 2025. Loans made to sba-designated underserved markets represented more than 89% of total lending activity, exceeding applicable sba benchmarks. Lending to low-to-moderate-income borrowers and communities represented more than 82% of community advantage lending activity. Women-owned businesses accounted for approximately 28% of total lending, minority-owned businesses represented approximately 14%, veteran- owned businesses represented approximately 21%, rural businesses represented approximately 14%, and manufacturing companies represented approximately 17% of loans originated during the year. The organization estimates that businesses receiving financing through its programs created approximately 197 new jobs during fiscal year 2025, further advancing its mission of supporting economic development and small business growth within the communities it serves. S
Operating model
- Revenue model
- Earned-program. 95% of the money available for current operations came from fees and other program revenue.
- Distribution model
- Direct operator. The filing allocates 100% of reported program-service expenses outside its grant, affiliate-payment, and member-benefit lines. This expense classification does not rule out separately announced grant awards.
The verdict
SUPPORTED - A large share of available resources goes toward mission work and the filed numbers largely add up. Expenses are high relative to revenue and total assets are small relative to annual expenses; liquid coverage is unknown.
Rating breakdown
- Financial Efficiency: 71
- Transparency & Controls: 77
- Accountability: 100
- Sustainability: 45
- Growth: 100
Detailed rating inputs
Financial Efficiency
- Mission deployment rate: 76.4%; rating input score 76
- Program expense ratio: 85.8%; rating input score 86
- Fundraising efficiency: Limited
Transparency & Controls
- Consistency checks: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Pay-setting controls: 3 of 6 controls in place; rating input score 50
- Compensation committee: Missing
- Independent consultant: Missing
- Other Form 990s reviewed: Pass
- Written employment contract: Missing
- Compensation survey or study: Pass
- Board or committee approval: Pass
- Foreign activity oversight: Limited
- Grant itemization coverage: Limited
- Major donor itemization: Limited
- Related-party transparency: Limited
Accountability
- Independent voting board: 100%; rating input score 100; 63rd percentile among comparable filings
- Governance controls: 8 of 8 controls in place; rating input score 100
- Conflict-of-interest policy: Pass
- Whistleblower policy: Pass
- Document-retention policy: Pass
- CEO compensation review process: Pass
- Other executive compensation review process: NotApplicable
- Form 990 shared with the board: Pass
- Board meeting minutes documented: Pass
- Audit committee oversight: Pass
- Independent financial-statement audit: Pass
Sustainability
- Operating margin: 8.2%; rating input score 51; 51st percentile among comparable filings
- Total-asset coverage ratio: 1.97; rating input score 57; 57th percentile among comparable filings
- Liabilities to assets ratio: 0.25; rating input score 31; 31st percentile among comparable filings
- Officer compensation ratio: 35.6%; rating input score 5; 5th percentile among comparable filings
Growth
- Program expense growth: 2.4% per year; rating input score 100; 21st percentile among comparable filings
- Revenue growth: 5% per year; rating input score 100; 37th percentile among comparable filings
- Asset growth: 7.2% per year; rating input score 100; 45th percentile among comparable filings
Details
- Where the money goes: 76.4% of revenue deployed · 85.8% of spending went to programs
- Governance: 9 of 9 board members independent · 8 of 8 filing controls reported
- Programs: 1 filed program accomplishment · $1.6M in reported program spending
- Leadership: top reported pay $352K · 12 people listed · 3 of 6 pay-setting controls reported
- Consistency: 28 of 28 current checks pass
- Schedules: 4 filed schedules · includes executive pay
- Filing history: 16 filing years from 2010 to 2025
- Contacts: How to reach this organization
- Money network: 3 filed money-flow records
- Grant readiness: Federal tax and exclusion status, award history, and grant-maker relationships.
- People: Everyone the filings name, and which of them the filings identify by more than a name.
- Staff and benefit plans: Retirement and health plans the organization files with the Department of Labor, and the people in them.
Key Signals
Signals prioritize questions for review. They are not findings of misconduct.
- Review — Sustainability: Operating margin scored 51/100.
- Review — Sustainability: Total-asset coverage ratio scored 57/100.
- High — Sustainability: Officer compensation ratio scored 5/100.
- Moderate — Sustainability: Liabilities to assets ratio scored 31/100.