1
00:00:02,440 --> 00:00:13,000
Speaker 1: Bloomberg Audio Studios, podcasts, radio news.

2
00:00:14,320 --> 00:00:18,400
Speaker 2: Hello Alice as a fintech startup offering grants, networking opportunities,

3
00:00:18,440 --> 00:00:21,400
Speaker 2: and access to finance for entrepreneurs from underrepresented groups.

4
00:00:21,400 --> 00:00:22,000
Speaker 3: In particular.

5
00:00:22,239 --> 00:00:24,640
Speaker 2: It's just announced a new Series C funding round in

6
00:00:24,680 --> 00:00:26,880
Speaker 2: our values the company at one hundred and thirty million dollars.

7
00:00:27,040 --> 00:00:27,240
Speaker 3: Now.

8
00:00:27,280 --> 00:00:29,800
Speaker 2: This is despite being on the front lines of a

9
00:00:29,840 --> 00:00:33,480
Speaker 2: litigation war over diversity in corporate America. Six months ago,

10
00:00:33,640 --> 00:00:35,720
Speaker 2: it was hit with a lawsuit far by the conservative

11
00:00:35,760 --> 00:00:38,960
Speaker 2: activist group America First Legal, which has lodged at least

12
00:00:38,960 --> 00:00:42,360
Speaker 2: six other DEI related suits elsewhere. It claims a grant

13
00:00:42,400 --> 00:00:46,040
Speaker 2: program by Hello Alice co runs for black owned small

14
00:00:46,080 --> 00:00:47,680
Speaker 2: businesses is discriminatory.

15
00:00:48,120 --> 00:00:49,600
Speaker 3: Now, the startup has had.

16
00:00:49,440 --> 00:00:52,360
Speaker 2: To spend six figures on fees for three law firms

17
00:00:52,360 --> 00:00:54,640
Speaker 2: so far, and we're going to dive into this ongoing

18
00:00:54,720 --> 00:00:56,960
Speaker 2: legal battle and indeed, well the ultimate growth of the

19
00:00:57,000 --> 00:00:59,400
Speaker 2: business too. Hello Alice co founder and president Elizabeth Gore

20
00:00:59,480 --> 00:01:01,760
Speaker 2: is here with us. And this comes at a time

21
00:01:01,800 --> 00:01:06,720
Speaker 2: where the DEI discussion pendulum has swung significantly and there's

22
00:01:06,720 --> 00:01:09,920
Speaker 2: this view that people giving and allocating grants to people

23
00:01:09,959 --> 00:01:14,160
Speaker 2: of color is in some way discriminating against white founders. Now,

24
00:01:14,560 --> 00:01:17,520
Speaker 2: how has that been a distruction for the business? Rochavi

25
00:01:17,600 --> 00:01:19,280
Speaker 2: hasn't been a galvanizing force, you.

26
00:01:19,240 --> 00:01:22,160
Speaker 4: Know, I will just open with it's been a galminizing force.

27
00:01:22,319 --> 00:01:25,080
Speaker 4: We just hit one point five million small businesses on

28
00:01:25,120 --> 00:01:29,440
Speaker 4: the platform and we serve everyone at Hellollis and with

29
00:01:29,600 --> 00:01:32,080
Speaker 4: the five and a half million small businesses that are

30
00:01:32,160 --> 00:01:35,039
Speaker 4: launching right now in this country, it is a great

31
00:01:35,080 --> 00:01:36,280
Speaker 4: time to be in fintech.

32
00:01:36,360 --> 00:01:38,520
Speaker 3: We think, and we provide credit.

33
00:01:38,240 --> 00:01:41,920
Speaker 4: And loans, grants and we've done forty million in philanthropy

34
00:01:41,959 --> 00:01:43,880
Speaker 4: and grants and we're very proud that those have gone

35
00:01:43,959 --> 00:01:47,600
Speaker 4: to women, people of color, US veterans, and white males.

36
00:01:47,680 --> 00:01:49,480
Speaker 4: But we're capitalists at the end of the day. We

37
00:01:49,520 --> 00:01:52,800
Speaker 4: want to make sure everyone are included in the small

38
00:01:52,840 --> 00:01:54,160
Speaker 4: business ecosystem.

39
00:01:54,200 --> 00:01:54,880
Speaker 3: It's critical.

40
00:01:55,640 --> 00:01:59,720
Speaker 2: How's any of your use a base. Any prospective clients

41
00:02:00,160 --> 00:02:02,520
Speaker 2: ever brought this up and I said, look, the fact

42
00:02:02,560 --> 00:02:06,000
Speaker 2: that you're giving grants to minorities, I feel discriminating.

43
00:02:07,480 --> 00:02:07,560
Speaker 3: No.

44
00:02:07,840 --> 00:02:10,840
Speaker 4: In fact, when we announced that we were being sued,

45
00:02:11,720 --> 00:02:15,880
Speaker 4: we've had hundreds of thousands of letters of support, emails,

46
00:02:15,960 --> 00:02:19,079
Speaker 4: people coming out. We're based in Houston, Texas and We've

47
00:02:19,120 --> 00:02:22,000
Speaker 4: got our vets coming out in support of African Americans.

48
00:02:22,000 --> 00:02:23,840
Speaker 3: We have women coming out in support of men.

49
00:02:24,200 --> 00:02:28,080
Speaker 4: The small business community, particularly after COVID has really galvanized,

50
00:02:28,320 --> 00:02:30,679
Speaker 4: they're growing now. Capital is tight right now, I will

51
00:02:30,680 --> 00:02:34,160
Speaker 4: give everyone that, but they're really a savvy community that

52
00:02:34,560 --> 00:02:37,079
Speaker 4: they have to have each other. If you look at

53
00:02:37,080 --> 00:02:41,280
Speaker 4: Main Street, all those shops are working together to scale

54
00:02:41,560 --> 00:02:43,959
Speaker 4: everything we need in this country. So that support is

55
00:02:44,000 --> 00:02:46,360
Speaker 4: there from everyone. We have never heard a complain about

56
00:02:46,360 --> 00:02:46,720
Speaker 4: it ever.

57
00:02:47,040 --> 00:02:49,240
Speaker 2: And so when you're fundraising out there looking for a

58
00:02:49,280 --> 00:02:51,520
Speaker 2: series C, how much you're having to talk to potential

59
00:02:51,520 --> 00:02:54,560
Speaker 2: investors about the use of the money for a.

60
00:02:54,520 --> 00:02:56,600
Speaker 3: Business case or indeed for a legal case.

61
00:02:56,880 --> 00:02:58,640
Speaker 2: Is any point not having to be commingled?

62
00:02:58,680 --> 00:03:00,000
Speaker 4: Well, sure, I mean there was a lot of time

63
00:03:00,760 --> 00:03:03,280
Speaker 4: when the case first came out there was concern about

64
00:03:03,400 --> 00:03:06,720
Speaker 4: the quote legitimacy of our business. And I'm here to

65
00:03:06,760 --> 00:03:09,480
Speaker 4: say that we are now one of the fastest platforms

66
00:03:09,520 --> 00:03:13,200
Speaker 4: for financial technology, offering credit and loans to small businesses.

67
00:03:14,280 --> 00:03:16,680
Speaker 4: We're about to be profitable, which is really exciting for

68
00:03:16,680 --> 00:03:20,880
Speaker 4: a fintech. But you have to disclose lawsuits a lawsuit

69
00:03:21,000 --> 00:03:25,320
Speaker 4: and that's why we are think that these are very distracting.

70
00:03:25,400 --> 00:03:27,760
Speaker 4: We think they're a waste of money. Everything we've done

71
00:03:27,800 --> 00:03:30,600
Speaker 4: is perfectly legal, and we want to make money for

72
00:03:30,639 --> 00:03:32,520
Speaker 4: our investors. We want to make money for our small

73
00:03:32,560 --> 00:03:33,280
Speaker 4: business owners.

74
00:03:33,600 --> 00:03:34,480
Speaker 3: And I'm really.

75
00:03:34,200 --> 00:03:37,680
Speaker 4: Happy to say despite all this, we have significantly grown.

76
00:03:38,040 --> 00:03:41,680
Speaker 3: It took investors a minute to step back be like, WHOA,

77
00:03:41,720 --> 00:03:44,040
Speaker 3: what is this? What is this going to impact me?

78
00:03:44,320 --> 00:03:46,200
Speaker 4: And they're capitalists at the end of the day, and

79
00:03:46,280 --> 00:03:49,000
Speaker 4: our business is growing, we are making money, our small

80
00:03:49,040 --> 00:03:52,360
Speaker 4: businesses are so no matter what, they came back in

81
00:03:52,480 --> 00:03:53,400
Speaker 4: and funded us and we.

82
00:03:53,400 --> 00:03:55,480
Speaker 3: Disclosed our Series C. So we're pretty stoked.

83
00:03:55,600 --> 00:03:58,120
Speaker 2: So you remain committed to the phenanthropic and devats on

84
00:03:58,240 --> 00:04:00,440
Speaker 2: the rons absolutely. What do you make me to two?

85
00:04:00,480 --> 00:04:02,920
Speaker 3: In terms of your own technology? What are you doing

86
00:04:02,920 --> 00:04:03,800
Speaker 3: and building narrative?

87
00:04:03,880 --> 00:04:06,240
Speaker 4: Well, what's really exciting is the evolution of AI. My

88
00:04:06,280 --> 00:04:08,720
Speaker 4: co founder Cohen Rodds has really been on the forefront

89
00:04:08,720 --> 00:04:10,680
Speaker 4: of that for a decade and now that it is

90
00:04:10,680 --> 00:04:13,880
Speaker 4: getting i would say cheaper to access great data, it

91
00:04:13,960 --> 00:04:17,360
Speaker 4: allows us with our we have a proprietary business Health

92
00:04:17,360 --> 00:04:20,880
Speaker 4: score that score small businesses financial health from zero to

93
00:04:20,960 --> 00:04:24,080
Speaker 4: one hundred and gets them ready for that next step

94
00:04:24,080 --> 00:04:26,440
Speaker 4: of funding so that Business Health Score is now being

95
00:04:26,520 --> 00:04:28,960
Speaker 4: used not just by us, but everyone from Wells Fargo

96
00:04:29,080 --> 00:04:31,839
Speaker 4: to Chase. So it's a great time for our business

97
00:04:31,880 --> 00:04:34,159
Speaker 4: and we're continuing to say that we are here for

98
00:04:34,200 --> 00:04:34,760
Speaker 4: small business.

99
00:04:34,839 --> 00:04:39,279
Speaker 3: We're going nowhere, come back. I'd love the legal dispute continues.

100
00:04:39,480 --> 00:04:40,560
Speaker 3: We thank her for her time.

101
00:04:40,680 --> 00:04:43,360
Speaker 2: Hello Alice. Co founder, president Elizabeth Cole