[Federal Register Volume 80, Number 7 (Monday, January 12, 2015)]
[Notices]
[Pages 1575-1579]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2015-00247]


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SMALL BUSINESS ADMINISTRATION


Small Business Investment Companies--Early Stage SBICs

AGENCY: U.S. Small Business Administration.

ACTION: Call for Early Stage Fund Managers.

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SUMMARY: This call for proposals (``Call'') invites experienced early 
stage fund managers to submit the preliminary materials discussed in 
Section II below, in the form of the Small Business Investment Company 
(``SBIC'') Management Assessment Questionnaire (``MAQ''), for 
consideration by the Small Business Administration (``SBA'') to be 
licensed as Early Stage Small Business Investment Companies. Licensed 
Early Stage SBICs may receive SBA-guaranteed debenture leverage of up 
to 100 percent of their Regulatory Capital, up to a maximum of $50 
million. However, Early Stage SBICs may request less than 100 percent 
of their Regulatory Capital. Importantly, Early Stage SBICs must invest 
at least 50% of their investment dollars in early stage small 
businesses. For the purposes of this initiative, an ``early stage'' 
business is one that has never achieved positive cash flow from 
operations in any fiscal year. By licensing and providing SBA 
guaranteed leverage to Early Stage SBICs, SBA seeks to expand 
entrepreneurs' access to capital and encourage innovation as part of 
President Obama's Start-Up America Initiative launched on January 31, 
2011. More information on the Early Stage SBIC Initiative and the 
regulations governing these SBICs may be found at www.sba.gov/inv/earlystage.

DATES: The following table provides the key milestones for the Early 
Stage SBIC Initiative.

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               Milestones                          Dates/Times
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Question and Answer Period Closed......  5 p.m. Eastern Time (``EST'')
                                          on February 27, 2015.
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                          Initial Review Period
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Management Assessment Questionnaires     5 p.m. EST--February 27, 2015.
 (``MAQs'') Due.
Interview Period.......................  April 20, 2015--May 1, 2015.
Anticipated Green Light Decision.......  May 7, 2015.
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                            Licensing Periods
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For funds seeking a license in FY 2015.  5 p.m. EST June 5, 2015.
Anticipated Licensing Date for FY 2015   No later than September 30,
 funds.                                   2015.
All other funds have 12 months from      Applications considered as they
 issuance of a Green Light to submit      are received.
 their license application.
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Notes:
 SBA reserves the right to extend its interview, due diligence,
  committee, and approval timelines as appropriate. SBA will update its
  website at www.sba.gov/inv/earlystage should these dates change.
  Applicants will be notified by e-mail should these dates change.
 SBA expects to issue additional calls for Early Stage Fund
  Managers on an annual basis. SBA will announce these calls via a call
  notice in the Federal Register.


ADDRESSES: Visit https://www.sba.gov/content/application-forms to 
download a copy of the Management Assessment Questionnaire (the 
``MAQ''). You must submit via express or next day delivery service (i) 
the relevant MAQ signature

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pages and (ii) the completed MAQ on a CD-ROM in Word and Excel format 
to the following: Scott Schaefer, Senior Investment Officer, Office of 
Investment and Innovation, U.S. Small Business Administration, 409 3rd 
St. SW., Suite #6300, Washington, DC 20416. SBA will not accept MAQs in 
.pdf format or MAQs delivered via regular mail (due to irradiation 
requirements), or hand delivery or courier service.

SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:

I. Background Information

    SBA invites early stage fund managers to submit the preliminary 
materials, as discussed in Section II below, in the form of a 
Management Assessment Questionnaire (``MAQ'') for the formation and 
management of an Early Stage SBIC. In 2012, SBA introduced the Early 
Stage Initiative. Early Stage SBICs represent a new sub-category of 
SBICs that will focus on making investments in early stage small 
businesses. Go to www.sba.gov/inv/earlystage for information on the 
Early Stage Initiative and links to the Early Stage SBIC Final Rule 
(``Final Rule''). This initiative is part of President Obama's ``Start-
Up America Initiative'' to promote American innovation and job creation 
by encouraging private sector investment in job-creating startups and 
small firms, accelerating research, and addressing barriers to success 
for entrepreneurs and small businesses.

II. Management Assessment Questionnaire/License Application Materials

    The first required submission in the Early Stage Licensing process 
is SBA's MAQ. The MAQ consists of two forms that cover qualitative and 
quantitative information on the management team, the proposed strategy 
for the SBIC, the principals' investment track record, and the proposed 
fund structure and economics. The MAQ consists of SBA Form 2181 and 
Exhibits A-F of SBA Form 2182.
    Should SBA issue you a ``Green Light letter,'' you must submit the 
SBIC License Application, consisting of SBA Forms 2181, 2182 and 2183 
(each of SBA Forms 2181 and 2182 updated to reflect any changes), for 
the final licensing phase. Exhibit O in SBA Form 2183 includes the 
fund's limited partnership agreement (``LPA''). Applicants should 
review this notice for special instructions associated with the LPA for 
Early Stage SBICs.

III. Early Stage Licensing Process

    There are four stages in SBA's Early Stage Licensing Process: A) 
Call Period; B) Initial Review; C) Applicant Fundraising and Document 
Preparation; and D) Licensing. Each of these stages is discussed below.
    A. Call Period. This notice signals the start of the Fiscal Year 
(``FY'') 2015 Early Stage SBIC call period. SBA intends to hold one 
Early Stage SBIC call period for accepting MAQs per fiscal year and SBA 
will issue a new notice in the Federal Register for the next call 
period. Interested parties should download a MAQ from https://www.sba.gov/content/application-forms. You should also review the 
information at www.sba.gov/inv/earlystage which includes a list of 
frequently asked questions (``FAQs'') regarding the Early Stage 
Initiative. If you still have questions regarding the Early Stage 
process, please email your questions to [email protected]. SBA 
will endeavor to respond to your question within three business days, 
depending on volume. SBA may not be able to respond to fund-specific 
questions or questions that require a legal opinion. SBA will not take 
any further questions after the end of the Question and Answer Period 
identified under the Dates section.
    B. Initial Review. At the end of the Initial Review phase, SBA will 
issue a Green Light letter to those applicants that have preliminarily 
met the evaluation criteria for an Early Stage SBIC, including the 
vintage year and geographic diversification criteria. The process for 
SBA's Initial Review is as follows:
    1. Submit MAQ. SBA must receive your completed MAQ no later than 
the date and time specified under the Dates section of this notice. SBA 
will send a confirmation that it has received your MAQ within three (3) 
business days of your submission. If you have not fully completed all 
sections of the MAQ or provided sufficient information to allow SBA to 
evaluate your management team, you may be ineligible for this call 
period. If so, SBA will notify you by email.
    2. Due Diligence. SBA will review all MAQs against the evaluation 
criteria identified in this notice. SBA may engage a contractor to 
assist in evaluating MAQs received in response to this Call. The 
Investment Committee (composed of senior managers from the Office of 
Investment and Innovation) will consider each MAQ, and if the 
Investment Committee concludes that the management team may be 
qualified for an Early Stage SBIC license, the entire team will be 
invited to SBA Headquarters at 409 Third Street SW., Washington, DC for 
an interview. Those applicants not invited for interviews will be 
notified. After September 30, 2015, SBA will provide feedback upon 
request to applicants not selected for an interview.
    3. Interview Period. SBA's invitation for an interview will 
identify a 1-hour time block during the Interview Period identified in 
the Dates section, along with the topics that the applicant should be 
prepared to address. SBA will conduct interviews at SBA Headquarters.
    4. Green Light Letter. Following the interview, the SBA will issue 
a Green Light letter to all applicants that have met the criteria 
identified in this notice, as determined by the Investment Committee. 
Applicants approved by the Investment Committee can expect to receive 
the Green Light letter via email within a few days of the Investment 
Committee's decision. The Green Light letter formally invites an 
applicant to submit its application for an SBIC License. The Green 
Light letter is only an invitation to proceed to the next stage in the 
process, not a guarantee that a fund will be issued an Early Stage SBIC 
license. Those applicants that do not receive a Green Light letter will 
also be notified by email within a few days of the Investment 
Committee's decision. After September 30, 2015, SBA will provide 
feedback upon request to those applicants that do not receive a Green 
Light letter.
    C. Fundraising and Document Preparation. If you receive a Green 
Light letter, you will need to raise the minimum Regulatory Capital 
needed to execute your strategy (which can be no less than $20 million) 
and submit your completed license application within one year from the 
date of the letter.
    1. Raise Regulatory Capital. An Early Stage SBIC applicant must 
have signed capital commitments for at least $20 million in Regulatory 
Capital prior to filing its license application.
    2. SBIC Education. All principals of the Early Stage SBIC applicant 
must attend a one-day SBIC Regulations training class. This training is 
held at least three times per year in Washington, DC The purpose of 
this class is to familiarize principals with the SBIC rules, 
regulations and compliance procedures. Although an applicant may 
receive a license before all principals have completed the training, a 
majority of principals must do so before licensing and all must do so 
before a licensed Early Stage SBIC will be permitted to draw leverage. 
Information concerning registration for classes can be obtained at 
www.sbia.org. Certain non-principals such as members of a board of 
directors may also be required to take the class. In addition, any 
employees or consultants whom

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you have assigned to handle regulatory matters or to interact with the 
Office of Investment and Innovation should attend the class.
    3. Finalize Documents & Perform Checklist. The following items must 
be completed and submitted in order to proceed to the Licensing phase:

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                                  Item
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Updated SBA Form 2181
SBA Forms 2182 & 2183
At least $20 million in Regulatory Capital evidenced by signed Capital
 Certificate in Form 2183 (Exhibit K)
$25,000 Non-refundable licensing fee
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    D. Licensing. During this last stage, SBA will review your 
completed application, perform further due diligence and analysis as 
needed, and make the final licensing decision. Applicants that receive 
Green Light letters in 2015, and wish to be licensed in FY 2015, will 
need to submit their completed license application no later than 5 p.m. 
EST on June 5, 2015, and follow all guidance identified in this notice. 
Applicants that do not comply with the requirements in this notice risk 
not receiving a license in FY 2015. All other applicants must apply 
within one year of the issuance of their Green Light letter. The 
process for Licensing is detailed below.
    1. SBA acceptance of license application. Upon receipt of the 
application, SBA will acknowledge receipt by email. Within three 
business days, SBA will determine whether the application is complete, 
meets the minimum capital requirements and satisfies management 
ownership diversity requirements. If so, SBA will send the applicant an 
acceptance letter. If not, SBA will ask the applicant to resolve the 
issues identified.
    2. Background and Documentation Review. Once the application has 
been accepted, SBA will forward the fingerprint cards and Statements of 
Personal History to SBA's Office of Inspector General for processing by 
the FBI. Following a review of the application and legal documents, SBA 
will provide the applicant with a ``comment letter.'' Applicants must 
respond in writing to the comment letter. Applicants seeking to be 
licensed in FY 2015 should make every effort to respond to SBA's 
comments within one week. Other applicants should respond as quickly as 
possible, but in any event within 30 days. Failure to address all 
comments to SBA's satisfaction will slow down the licensing process. 
Please note that pre-licensing investments, which SBA must review and 
approve before they are closed, will also add to the licensing time.
    3. Divisional Licensing Committee. After SBA's licensing staff and 
Office of General Counsel have completed their review, the license 
application is presented to the Divisional Licensing Committee. This 
committee is composed of the senior managers of the Office of 
Investment and Innovation. If approved by the Divisional Licensing 
Committee, the application is forwarded to the Agency Licensing 
Committee which is comprised of certain senior managers of the SBA. 
Prior to consideration by the Agency Licensing Committee, an applicant 
must provide a signed, up-to-date capital certificate showing that it 
has at least $2.5 million in Leverageable Capital, consisting of cash 
on deposit, approved pre-licensing investments funded with partners' 
contributed capital, and/or approved organizational and operational 
expenses paid out of partners' contributed capital, and at least $20 
million in Regulatory Capital. The applicant's bank must certify that 
the requisite funds are in the applicant's account and unencumbered.
    4. Agency Licensing Committee and Administrator Approval. If the 
Agency Licensing Committee recommends approval of your license 
application, it will be forwarded to the SBA Administrator or her 
designee for final action as soon as you submit fully executed copies 
of all legal documents. (Please note that the executed documents must 
be identical to the ``final form'' of the documents approved by SBA.) 
If the Administrator or her designee approves your application, your 
Early Stage SBIC license is issued.
    5. Leverage Commitments. SBA has allocated $200 million in FY 2015 
for Early Stage SBICs. SBA expects to allocate another $200 million in 
FY 2016. SBA expects to be able to commit the full amount of leverage 
that an Early Stage SBIC requests at the time of licensing. If total 
leverage commitments requested for the FY 2015 licensing cycle exceed 
the amount available in FY 2015, SBA will allocate available leverage 
across all FY2015 Early Stage SBICs on a pro rata basis. Early Stage 
SBICs licensed in FY 2015 will be eligible to request the remainder of 
their uncommitted leverage request in FY 2016 based on availability. 
Early Stage SBICs that raise additional private capital after licensing 
may request leverage commitments against that capital. However, such 
requests are subject to leverage availability and will not be 
considered until all other licensee requests are satisfied.

IV. Early Stage SBIC LPA and Organizational Instructions

    A. Early Stage SBIC Model LPA. In order to expedite the review of 
Early Stage SBIC license applications, SBA has adopted a Model Early 
Stage SBIC Limited Partnership Agreement (``Model LPA''). The Model LPA 
includes required provisions shown in Bold Arial type and optional 
provisions in a different font. You must download the Model LPA at 
http://www.sba.gov/content/model-early-stage-sbic-limited-partnership-agreement. Applicants must use the Model LPA as a template and must 
follow the organizational structure of the Model LPA. Further, 
applicants must include in their limited partnership agreements all of 
the required provisions of the Model LPA that appear in Bold Arial 
type. SBA will not accept additions, deletions and other changes or 
modifications to any of those required provisions. Applicants are 
required to submit a copy of their limited partnership agreement 
blacklined against the Model LPA, as explained in the instructions 
provided at the beginning of the Model LPA. SBA provides the following 
further guidance on limited partnership agreements:
    1. SBA encourages applicants to adhere to the Model LPA to the 
maximum extent possible. Although SBA does not prohibit changes to 
those Model LPA provisions that do not appear in Bold Arial type, such 
changes must be explained in a narrative accompanying the applicant's 
limited partnership agreement. The entire agreement is subject to SBA's 
approval.
    2. Conditions or restrictions on the ability of the general partner 
to call private capital commitments are limited to those permitted by 
the Model LPA.
    3. Withdrawal rights are limited to those permitted by the Model 
LPA.
    4. Applicants must adhere to SBA's management fee policies 
available at http://www.sba.gov/sites/default/files/files/SBICTechnote07arev200804.pdf. This policy sets a maximum allowable 
management fee only. The actual management fee will be set by 
negotiation between the management team and the limited partners and 
may be less than the maximum. Early Stage SBIC applicants should be 
aware that the calculation of an SBIC's capital impairment percentage 
is affected by all fund expenses, including management fees. SBA will 
consider the management fee in its licensing evaluation criteria as 
part of fund economics. SBA believes that the primary incentive for 
fund managers should be carried interest rather than fees.

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    5. The designation of fund expenses and expenses to be paid out of 
the management fee must be consistent with SBIC program regulations 
(see 13 CFR 107.520).
    a. Organizational costs, expenses incurred in applying for a 
license and forming the SBIC and its entity general partner (but not 
its parent fund or any other affiliate), are considered a partnership 
expense. Organizational expenses typically include items such as the 
licensing fee, cost of legal and other professional and consulting 
services, travel and other fundraising expenses, costs of preparing, 
printing and distributing the private placement memorandum or other 
offering materials, and other related expenses such as telephone and 
supply costs. SBA strongly encourages applicants to include in the LPA 
a reasonable cap on the total organizational costs to be paid by the 
applicant. Costs that SBA deems excessive can be paid by an affiliate 
of the applicant or deducted from the applicant's Regulatory Capital 
prior to licensing (Regulatory Capital must still be at least $20 
million after the deduction).
    b. Unreimbursed expenses on investments in small businesses that do 
not close may be designated as a partnership expense but must be capped 
at a reasonable level.
    6. Right of limited partners to remove general partner--Provisions 
allowing removal of the general partner without cause (``no-fault 
divorce'' provisions) are permitted only after the Early Stage SBIC has 
repaid all outstanding leverage and any other amounts payable to SBA 
and has surrendered its SBIC license.
    7. Any amendments to the limited partnership agreement required by 
SBA must be executed before licensing. Any amendments initiated by the 
applicant during the licensing process must be submitted to SBA in 
draft form as early as possible. SBA will not consider amendments to an 
Early Stage SBIC's LPA for a minimum of six months after licensing.
    B. Organization. Early Stage SBIC applicants must adhere to the 
following rules regarding organizational structure:
    1. Applicant cannot be a BDC or other public entity or a subsidiary 
of any such entity.
    2. All provisions governing the operation of the SBIC must be 
included in the limited partnership agreement. A side letter between 
the applicant (or its general partner) and an investor may supplement 
the limited partnership agreement but may not supersede it. In the 
event of a conflict between the limited partnership agreement and the 
side letter, the limited partnership agreement shall control. If an 
investor requests a side letter provision that is of general interest 
to all investors (e.g., a provision regarding the fund's efforts to 
invest in certain geographic areas), that provision should be 
incorporated into the limited partnership agreement. All side letters 
require SBA's prior written approval.
    3. Applicant must adopt SBA Model Valuation Guidelines.
    4. Drop-down SBICs
    a. The drop-down structure should be used only when it has a clear 
business purpose:
    i. Example 1--Parent fund has already raised capital and begun 
operating and wants to commit a portion of its capital to an Early 
Stage SBIC.
    ii. Example 2--Substantial capital will be retained for investment 
at the parent level (SBA suggests that managers consider the 
alternative of structuring a non-SBIC fund side by side with the SBIC).
    b. Drop-down funds must have one parent fund only and the parent 
fund must be a U.S. entity.
    c. Parent must qualify as a traditional investment company based on 
established SBA precedent.
    d. Parent must disclose the identity of all of its investors.
    e. All of the investors in the parent fund (the SBIC's ``Class A'' 
limited partner) must agree to be ``Class B'' limited partners of the 
SBIC with an obligation to fund the Early Stage SBIC capital calls if 
the Class A limited partner does not. The obligation of the Class B 
limited partners to the Early Stage SBIC is reduced dollar for dollar 
as the parent fund contributes capital to the SBIC. The Model LPA 
contains required provisions for drop-down funds.
    f. The Class B limited partners' commitments to the SBIC applicant 
must be expressed as a specific dollar amount (not just as the 
``proportionate share'' of parent fund's commitment).
    g. The total dollar amount of Class B commitments must be equal to 
the Class A limited partner's unfunded commitment to the SBIC. SBA will 
not require Class B commitments if the SBIC's Regulatory Capital will 
not include any unfunded commitments from the Class A limited partner.
    C. Capitalization. Applicants must raise the minimum $20 million in 
Regulatory Capital by the time the license application is submitted.
    1. Capital commitments from limited partners must be made directly 
to the SBIC (and its parent fund, in the case of a drop-down) with no 
intermediaries involved.
    2. The Early Stage SBIC applicant must have the unconditional 
ability to legally enforce collection of each capital commitment.
    3. Capital Certificate. Capital commitments must be documented in 
the capital certificate (Exhibit K of SBA Form 2183) and comply with 
the following:
    a. A signed Capital Certificate must be submitted with the license 
application.
    b. SBA will permit only the sole following condition on private 
capital commitments: The receipt of an Early Stage SBIC license.
    c. Individual investors must list primary residence address, not a 
business address.
    d. Street addresses are required (no P.O. Box addresses).
    4. A dual commitment may be obtained to back up the commitment of 
any direct investor in the SBIC who is not an Institutional Investor.
    5. Capital commitments by the principals, general partner, or their 
affiliates must be payable in cash when called (cannot be satisfied 
with notes or management fee waivers).
    D. General Partner
    1. All principals must:
    a. Hold direct ownership interests in and be the direct individual 
managers of the general partner, with no intervening entities.
    b. Receive carried interest directly from the general partner; for 
drop-down SBICs, carried interest may be received from the parent 
fund's general partner.
    2. A maximum of 25% of the carried interest may be allocated to 
non-principals.
    3. Any provision to remove or terminate a principal must be spelled 
out within the general partner's organizational document and must not 
be tied to events occurring under other agreements (e.g., a principal's 
employment agreement with the management company).
    E. Investment Advisor (``Management Company''). Ownership of the 
Management Company that is highly disproportionate to the ownership of 
the general partner (e.g., one principal is the 100% owner) is not 
viewed favorably by SBA, but may be acceptable if there are adequate 
checks and balances on the powers of the dominant owner. Areas that 
cannot be subject to unilateral decision-making include the following:
    1. Power to remove or terminate other principals.
    2. Power to change the composition of the Early Stage SBIC's 
investment committee.
    V. Early Stage SBIC Licensing Evaluation Criteria.
    A. General Criteria. SBA will evaluate an Early Stage SBIC license 
applicant

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based on the submitted application materials, Investment Committee 
interviews with the applicant's management team, and the results of 
background investigations, public record searches, and other due 
diligence conducted by SBA and other Federal agencies. SBA will 
evaluate an Early Stage SBIC license applicant based on the same 
factors applicable to other license applicants, as set forth in 13 CFR 
107.305, with particular emphasis on managers' skills and experience in 
evaluating and investing in early stage companies. As discussed in the 
Final Rule, evaluation criteria fall into four areas: (A) Management 
Team; (B) Track Record; (C) Proposed Investment Strategy; and (D) 
Organizational Structure and Fund Economics. You should review these 
regulations prior to completing your MAQ.
    B. Managing SBA Leverage. SBA will pay particular attention to how 
a team's investment strategy works with proposed SBA leverage. Early 
Stage Debenture leverage either requires a 5 year interest and annual 
charge reserve from the date of issue or is structured with an original 
issue discount that covers the interest and annual charges for the 
first 5 years. In either case, Early Stage SBICs must identify how 
quarterly interest payments beginning in the 6th year from Debenture 
issue will be met. Sources of liquidity to make interest payments may 
include (a) private capital; (b) realizations; or (c) current income. 
As part of your plan of operations, you should carefully consider how 
your investment strategy will work with SBA leverage and make 
appropriate suggestions to manage risk. Risk mitigation strategies 
might include making some investments in current pay instruments, 
taking down less than a full tier of leverage (i.e., leverage less than 
100% of Regulatory Capital), taking leverage down later in the fund's 
life, lowering management expenses, and reserving more private capital. 
The strategies you choose to employ should be appropriate for your 
management team's track record and investment strategy.
    C. SBA Diversification Rights. Per 13 CFR 107.320, SBA reserves the 
right to maintain diversification among Early Stage SBICs with respect 
to (i) the year in which they commence operations (``vintage year'') 
and (ii) geographic location.
    1. Vintage Year Diversification. Vintage year has a major impact on 
the return expectations of a fund and excessive concentration in a 
single year could substantially increase program risk. Therefore, SBA 
reserves the right, when licensing Early Stage SBICs, to maintain 
diversification across vintage years. SBA believes that it will be able 
to manage vintage year diversification through its call process. If SBA 
receives an extraordinary number of qualified applicants in FY 2015, it 
may not approve all such applicants.
    2. Geographic Diversification. All Early Stage SBICs must first 
meet SBA's basic licensing criteria. After those criteria are met, SBA 
reserves the right to maintain diversification among Early Stage SBICs 
with respect to the geographic location in which the Early Stage SBIC 
expects to invest.

Pravina Raghavan,
Deputy Associate Administrator, Office of Investment and Innovation.
[FR Doc. 2015-00247 Filed 1-9-15; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8025-01-P