small minority businesses, because they didn’t have those great relationships with the banks,” Johnson told the Wall Street Journal. “So this was easy for us to understand.”
“Johnson’s EquiTrust is providing critical financial support to underserved communities and businesses that have been traditionally neglected,” EquiTrust and MBE Capital Partners said in a joint news release. “These small and diverse businesses often have difficulty developing strong lending relationships with big banks.”
The goal is to help 100,000 businesses secure resources that will sustain them through the pandemic, MBE Capital CEO Rafael Martinez said on MSNBC.
The Beverly Hills-based Magic Johnson Enterprises formerly owned Magic Johnson Theatres in four cities, 31 Burger King restaurants in the Southeast, and 13 24-Hour Fitness/Magic Johnson Sport health clubs. Over the years, Magic Johnson Enterprises has continually invested ownership in many lucrative businesses such as the Los Angeles Lakers, movie theaters, and restaurants in the United States, including T.G.I. Friday’s, Sodexo, and Burger King locations.