(a) Companies licensed on or after October 1, 1996. A company licensed on or after October 1, 1996, must have Leverageable Capital of at least $2,500,000 and must meet the applicable minimum Regulatory Capital requirement in this paragraph (a), unless lower Leverageable Capital and Regulatory Capital amounts are approved by SBA as part of a Wind-Up Plan in accordance with §107.590(c):

(1) Licensees other than Participating Securities issuers and Early Stage SBICs. Except for Participating Securities issuers and Early Stage SBICs, a Licensee must have Regulatory Capital of at least $5,000,000. As an exception to this general rule, SBA in its sole discretion and based on a showing of special circumstances and good cause may license an applicant with Regulatory Capital of at least $3,000,000, but only if the applicant:

(i) Has satisfied all licensing standards and requirements except the minimum capital requirement, as determined solely by SBA;

(ii) Has a viable business plan reasonably projecting profitable operations; and

(iii) Has a reasonable timetable for achieving Regulatory Capital of at least $5,000,000.

(2) Participating Securities issuers. A Licensee that wishes to be eligible to apply for Participating Securities must have Regulatory Capital of at least $10,000,000, unless it demonstrates to SBA's satisfaction that it can be financially viable over the long term with a lower amount. Under no circumstances can the Licensee have Regulatory Capital of less than $5,000,000.

(3) Early Stage SBICs. An Early Stage SBIC must have Regulatory Capital of at least $20 million.

(b) Companies licensed before October 1, 1996. A company licensed before October 1, 1996 must meet the minimum capital requirements applicable to such company, as required by the regulations in effect on September 30, 1996. See §107.1120(c)(2) for Leverage eligibility requirements.

[63 FR 5866, Feb. 5, 1998, as amended at 77 FR 25051, Apr. 27, 2012; 82 FR 39340, Aug. 18, 2017]