For many would-be entrepreneurs from underrepresented communities, securing financing can be a major hurdle.

As part of Asian Pacific Islander Heritage Month, two keynote speakers from the Hmong Chamber of Commerce — Project Coordinator Ger Thao and Executive Director May yer Thao— discussed how they provide business opportunities for Hmong and Southeast Asian community members at Union South on Monday.

Founded in 2001, the Hmong Chamber of Commerce provides business development for underrepresented business owners and entrepreneurs, specifically those in the Hmong and Southeast Asian communities. It provides assistance in areas such as marketing, loans and finances.

“[HCC] does a lot of bridging between the Hmong and Southeast Asian communities into mainstream organization,” May yer Thao said.

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The organization is able to provide minority business owners and entrepreneurs with small loans. These loans allow “unbankable communities” the financial assistance they need to start their business and keep it going, Thao said.

Minority communities often have difficulty getting approved for a loan by traditional lenders due to a lack of credit history among first- or second-generation families, Thao said. HCC has more flexible criteria in comparison to traditional lenders.

“[Minority communities] don’t have the collateral, they don’t have the credit to be approved by traditional lenders,” Thao said.

When giving out business loans, the ethnic chambers consider themselves “character-based lenders.” They look at the individual’s project and their past cooperation with financial advice, rather than just their credit, May yer Thao said.

The loans help these individuals gain credit history, Thao said. After two years, HCC’s goal is to have the business owners move on to traditional lenders.

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Another economic challenge facing the Hmong and Southeast Asian community is the “invisibility” between different areas in the cities, Thao said. Southeast Asian communities often do not advertise in the mainstream market because it’s “out of their comfort zone.”

“We really want to create wealth within the Hmong community, but that can’t happen unless we start marketing more mainstream,” Thao said.