cei
- Company typePrivate
- Founded1977
- HeadquartersBrunswick, United States
- Headcount—
- GTM typeB2B
- OfferingServices
cei firmographics
Firmographics- Name
- cei
- Legal name
- Coastal Enterprises, Inc.
- Website
- https://ceiventures.com
- Company type
- Private
- Founded year
- 1977
- Operating status
- Operating
- Ownership category
- akta.pro rank
cei industry classification
Industry- Product category
- Community Development Financial Services
- NAICS
- Funds, Trusts, and Other Financial Vehicles (525)
- SIC
- Miscellaneous Business Credit Institution (6159)
- akta.pro primary industry
- Impact Investing & Social Finance (Funds, CDFIs, Microfinance) (BPAGALAA)
Keywords
Where cei is headquartered
LocationHeadquarters
- HQ city
- Brunswick
- HQ country
- United States
- HQ region
- North America
Offices4 records
Markets served
cei business model
Business model- GTM type
- B2B
- Offering type
- Services
- Cost components
- Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Infrastructure
Revenue model
- Loan Interest Income: CEI generates revenue through interest on loans provided to small businesses, including microloans (up to $30,000), small business loans, real estate financing, and venture capital investments.
- Fund Management Fees: CEI Ventures, a subsidiary, manages socially responsible venture capital funds and earns management fees from managing funds like the Coastal Ventures V LP (The Good Jobs Fund) at $21.5 million.
- Business Advising Services: CEI provides free and fee-based business advising services including free general business assistance and specialized programs through the Women's Business Center, helping entrepreneurs become loan-ready.
Pricing tiers
| Model | Billing | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Subscription | Monthly | Wicked Fast Microloan for small amounts |
| Subscription | Monthly | Small Business Loans |
| Other | Multi-year contract | Venture Capital Equity Investment |
Go-to-market motion3 records
Distribution channels5 records
Marketing channels6 records
cei product offering
Product offeringCore offering
CEI is a nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) that provides flexible small business loans (including the Wicked Fast Microloan for amounts up to $30,000), venture capital and equity investment through CEI Ventures, New Markets Tax Credit financing through CEI Capital Management, real estate impact investing through CEI Boulos Capital Management, Maine Historic Tax Credit financing through 30FSI, and free and fee-based business advising (including a Women's Business Center). It serves underserved entrepreneurs, small businesses, farms, fisheries, child care providers, and community development projects primarily in Maine and across the Northeast.
Product overview
CEI (Coastal Enterprises, Inc.) is a community development financial institution (CDFI) offering a comprehensive suite of financing, advising, and investment services. The core offerings include small business loans (with the Wicked Fast Microloan for amounts under $30,000), venture capital and equity investment through CEI Ventures, real estate financing, and climate resilience funding. The organization operates through four subsidiaries: CEI Ventures (socially responsible venture capital), CEI Capital Management (New Markets Tax Credits), CEI Boulos Capital Management (real estate investment), and 30FSI (historic tax credit financing). Additionally, CEI provides specialized business advising programs including the Women's Business Center, immigrant and refugee services, child care business support, farms and food systems advising, and general business development services, complemented by workshops and events for entrepreneurs.
Differentiator
Problem solved
Functional benefit
Products and services
- Small Business Loans (including Wicked Fast Microloan)
Quantifiable outcome
- $26/hr average entry level wage across CEI Ventures portfolio companies
- +2 more outcomes
Companies that use cei
Customer profileNamed customers15 records
Segments8 records
Ideal customer profiles6 records
cei technology and API
TechnologyTechnology focussed No
API detail
- Has API
- No
- API docs
- API detail
Core technology
AI maturity
App detail
cei partnerships and signals
Strategic signalPartnerships
One partnership is on record.
- CEI's Workforce Solutions TeamcoreProvides pragmatic workforce solutions to CEI Ventures portfolio companies including workforce assessments, job quality strategies, and hiring process improvements.
Scale indicators8 records
Recent moves6 records
Expansion highlights5 records
cei competitors and assessment
Company assessmentDirect peers
- Capital Impact Partners: Capital Impact Partners is a national CDFI providing loans, investments, and capacity building to underserved communities, with a comparable mix of small business lending, affordable housing finance, and mission-aligned investment vehicles.
- Nonprofit Finance Fund: Nonprofit Finance Fund is a national CDFI providing loans, asset-building programs, and advising to nonprofits and social enterprises, with a comparable integrated capital-plus-advisory model.
- Self-Help Credit Union: Self-Help is one of the largest U.S. CDFIs offering small business lending, real estate financing, and venture capital through Self-Help Ventures Fund, with a similarly integrated model to CEI's lending-plus-advising-plus-VC structure.
- Craft3: Craft3 is a Certified CDFI serving Oregon, Washington, and California with small business loans, real estate financing, and impact investing — a direct regional parallel to CEI's small business lending and NMTC structure.
- Arctaris Impact Investors: Arctaris Impact Investors is a Bozeman, MT-based impact investment firm backing businesses in underserved U.S. communities — its Managing Director sits on CEI Ventures' Board, signaling overlapping investment strategy and LP base.
- SJF Ventures: SJF Ventures is a Durham-based impact VC fund investing in high-growth companies creating quality jobs in underserved regions — directly comparable to CEI Ventures' Good Jobs Fund thesis and target geographies.
- Calvert Impact Capital: Calvert Impact Capital is a nonprofit CDFI that pools capital from institutional investors to fund community development loans and impact investments, structurally comparable to CEI's CDFI + fund management hybrid model.
- Three Roots Capital: Three Roots Capital is a CDFI and CDE serving East Tennessee and Appalachia with debt, equity, and NMTC financing, and its CEO recently joined CEI Ventures' Board — a tightly overlapping peer in mission and product mix.
Emerging players
- Kiva: Kiva operates a global crowdfunded microloan platform for small and underserved entrepreneurs — an adjacent digital peer that competes at the microloan/small business financing layer where CEI's Wicked Fast Microloan operates.
Broad incumbents
- Opportunity Finance Network: Opportunity Finance Network is the national CDFI industry association and intermediary providing capital, policy advocacy, and capacity-building to member CDFIs like CEI, framing the broader ecosystem CEI operates within.
Market position
Strengths5 records
Weaknesses5 records
Competitive moat6 records
Key risks1 record
Key highlights7 records
Customer concentration
cei social profiles
Digital presencecei financial estimates
Financial estimateRevenue estimate
Valuation estimate
cei leadership team
Management profileNumber of profiles
Profiles6 records
cei subsidiaries and ownership
Company hierarchySubsidiaries4 records
cei funding detail
Funding detailFunding overview
Funding rounds
Investors
Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
cei M&A and investment
M&A and investmentM&A
Investments
M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →
Frequently asked questions about cei
What does cei do?
CEI is a nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) that provides flexible small business loans (including the Wicked Fast Microloan for amounts up to $30,000), venture capital and equity investment through CEI Ventures, New Markets Tax Credit financing through CEI Capital Management, real estate impact investing through CEI Boulos Capital Management, Maine Historic Tax Credit financing through 30FSI, and free and fee-based business advising (including a Women's Business Center). It serves underserved entrepreneurs, small businesses, farms, fisheries, child care providers, and community development projects primarily in Maine and across the Northeast.
Is cei a public or private company?
cei is a private company. It is classified as nonprofit foundation owned and is currently operating.
When was cei founded?
cei was founded in 1977.
Where is cei based?
cei is headquartered in Brunswick, United States, in the North America region.
How does cei make money?
Three revenue lines are on record. Loan Interest Income is the primary driver. The others are fund Management Fees and business Advising Services.
Who are cei's main competitors?
Direct peers on record are Capital Impact Partners, Nonprofit Finance Fund, Self-Help Credit Union, Craft3, Arctaris Impact Investors, SJF Ventures, Calvert Impact Capital and Three Roots Capital. Kiva is listed as an emerging player. Opportunity Finance Network is listed as a broad incumbent.
Does cei have an API?
No public API is recorded for cei.
What industry is cei in?
cei's product category is Community Development Financial Services. Its primary akta.pro industry code is BPAGALAA, Impact Investing & Social Finance (Funds, CDFIs, Microfinance). Its NAICS code is 525 and its SIC code is 6159.