The Merchants Fund

The Merchants Fund provides grants and other support to merchants and small businesses in Philadelphia. TMF was established in 1854 - a time in our nation’s history when there was no safety net to provide health and disability insurance or pension plans and retirement benefits - to provide charitable gifts to merchants facing financial hardship. The Fund evolved from the Mercantile Beneficial Association, an organization dedicated to providing business advice, networking opportunities, and protection from financial failure or default due to illness, old age, or disability. Recognizing its privilege as a funder and the historical and systemic disinvestment in communities of color, including BIPOC business owners, as well as the inequitable access to capital experienced by BIPOC, immigrant, and women merchants, TMF seeks to: - Utilize the access and acumen of its leadership to strengthen its grantmaking; - Engage small business owners in decision-making processes; - Align its corpus to reflect its values; and - Make flexible grants that address these historic disparities and build wealth within these communities.