CEI is an expert in rural business development and financing.  A private, nonprofit Community Development Corporation (CDC) and Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) based in Wiscasset, Maine, CEI was founded in 1977 to develop job-creating natural resources and small business ventures in rural regions of Maine, and has grown to serve all of Maine, its primary market, and areas of northern New England and upstate New York. With its New Markets Tax Credit Program, CEI is able to invest in projects throughout rural America.

CEI does its work by lending to and investing in small and medium sized businesses, and providing business support and technical counseling services to those who need them. A pioneer in its field, CEI is one of the nation's premiere rural CDC/CDFIs.

CEI has subsidiaries and affiliates that enable it to expand its programs and services, such as: 

• CEI Capital Management, LLC manages CEI's $683 million allocation under the New Markets Tax Credit program
• CEI Investment Notes, Inc., which provides a way for individuals and institutions to invest in the local economy in order to reap social, environmental and economic benefits, and
• CEI Ventures, Inc. and CEI Community Ventures, Inc., which invest venture capital in promising job-generating businesses

CEI embraces a comprehensive approach to building assets, linking business financing to job creation, entrepreneurship, sustainable development, policy advocacy and research. The organization operates in primarily rural markets where financial returns are not sufficient to attract traditional investment, but where CEI's goal of achieving economic, social and environmental benefits can be satisfied.

Ron Phillips, President of CEI, speaks on public television's "Conversations with Maine" .