But until 2023, federal guidelines left Asian communities<\/a>\u00a0off the list that lenders like Hill\u2019s organization were allowed to target with much-needed support in Fresno County<\/a>.<\/p>\n That meant groups like Fresno County\u2019s Southeast Asian community \u2014 which is more than 80,000 individuals strong<\/a> \u2014 were rendered invisible in local business data, no matter how many beloved Southeast Asian-owned restaurants, markets and other businesses set up shop across the county.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat are the lending gaps? What are the business service needs?\u201d Hill said in an interview Friday. \u201cWe can\u2019t just say, well, this is what it is in the African American community, so I\u2019m going to assume that\u2019s what it is also in the Southeast Asian (community) \u2014 no.\u201d<\/p>\n Thanks to recent federal guideline changes<\/a> and a new local initiative, local lenders and business advocates hope to soon have better answers to those questions for the Southeast Asian business community.<\/p>\n Alongside several partners, Access Plus Capital is launching the first-ever study of Southeast Asian businesses in Fresno County.\u00a0<\/p>\n It will compile data on employment, payroll, firm count and sector distribution for the county\u2019s Southeast Asian businesses. It will also assess specific capital and technical assistance needs among those business owners.<\/p>\n The resulting dataset will be the first of its kind for not only the county but also the state, officials say, and one of just a handful of similar studies of Southeast Asian business owners across the country.<\/p>\n Hill joined local Southeast Asian community organizations, business owners and Councilmember Brandon Vang on Friday morning outside of Laotian American restaurant La Kitchen<\/a> in southeast Fresno to share plans for the study.<\/p>\n \u201cIt\u2019s long overdue in the county of Fresno, long overdue probably in the state of California, long overdue in this country,\u201d said Pao Yang, president of the Fresno Center<\/a>, \u201cto gather data that is so vital to the success of our economy.<\/p>\n \u201cI didn\u2019t say \u2018Southeast Asian economy,\u2019\u201d Yang added, \u201cbut our economy as a whole.\u201d<\/p>\n The goal, once that data is finally captured, is to use it to finally target Southeast Asian business owners with the business support services they need.<\/p>\n
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Pao Yang, president of the Fresno Center, joined community leaders for a news conference on Friday, Jan. 30, 2026, announcing the launch of Fresno County\u2019s first-ever study of Southeast Asian businesses. Julianna Morano | Fresnoland<\/p>\n