EIC Lender Network

UNIVERSITY OF MISSISSIPPI
Notice of Proposed Sole Source Purchase
#ITSS 474
The University of Mississippi (UM) anticipates purchasing the item(s) listed below as an IT sole source purchase.
Anyone objecting to this purchase as a sole source shall follow the procedures outlined below.
Commodity or commodities to be purchased (manufacturer, model, description):
EIC Lender Network (FundMe.ms)
The need to be fulfilled by this item(s) and why it is the only one that can meet the specific needs of
the department:
The Mississippi Small Business Development Center's lender network initiative requires a technology
platform capable of meeting specific business requirements that requires lender network coordination,
borrower intake, multi-lender matching, support services, and analytics in a single integrated system.
FundMe.MS. No other vendor has built an equivalent system for the SBDC/economic market. Features
that Economic Impact Catalyst (EIC) have incorporated include Statewide Capital Access that will enable
small businesses across all Mississippi counties to access financing through a single, easy-to-use
application portal; Lender Network Management to support onboarding, coordination, and
management of multiple lending partners (banks, CDFIs, community lenders) within a single
administrative environment; Borrower Matching & Introduction that automatically routes and
introduces borrowers to the most appropriate lending partners based on application data and lender
criteria; Integrated Business Support provides borrowers access to advising, financial coaching, and
technical assistance resources within the same technology environment; Custom State Branding that
operates under Mississippi-specific branding (FundMe.MS) with a public-facing URL and identity aligned
with the MS SBDC's outreach goals; Impact Reporting of aggregate network-wide data on capital
facilitated, businesses served, and lender activity for SBDC reporting requirements to funders and
stakeholders; and Equity & Accessibility as a design and deployment approach that reaches underserved
entrepreneurs, particularly in rural and historically underinvested Mississippi communities. Mississippi
Small Business Development Center seeks to utilize FundMe.MS as a one stop solution for MS small
businesses to find and apply to vendors with the idea of no wrong door, so that every business can be
referred to the right capital solution. The EIC Lender Network is a cloud-hosted web application
(FundMe.ms) built on EIC's Catalyzer/GEN2 SaaS platform. EIC's proprietary model uniquely supports a
central coordinating entity (MS SBDC) managing a distributed network of lenders and support partners
without overburdening those local entities with administrative requirements. No other solutions exist
for the small business/economic development market that is an integrated one-stop model that
combines lender network coordination, borrower intake, multi-lender matching, support services, and
analytics in a single integrated system. Alternatives require stitching together 4-6 separate platforms
with no unified borrower experience.
Name of company/individual selling the item and why that source is the only possible source that can
provide the required item(s):
Startup Space, LLC dba Economic Impact Catalyst (EIC)
Why the amount to be expended for the commodity is reasonable:
The MSBDCN researched other companies that provides similar services and found that the combined
cost to provide the integrated solution that EIC's FundMe.MS was much higher than EIC's lifecycle cost.
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The cost of EIC's FundMe.MS platform reflects the value of a fully operational, state-branded, integrated
lender network system that has already been built, deployed, and tested, not the cost of building a new
system from scratch.
Efforts that the agency went through to obtain the best possible price:
The MSBDCN negotiated with the vendor to obtain the best price possible. The MSBDCN has worked
with EIC in the past and the vendor is familiar with our network structure and needs, which helped in
providing cost savings.
Submission Instructions and Format of Response from Objecting Parties:
Interested parties who have reason to believe that the item(s) above should not be certified as a sole source
should provide information in the following format for UM to use in determining whether or not to proceed with
awarding the Sole Source purchase.
1.1 Interested Party Information
1.1.1 Contact Name, Phone Number, Address and email address
1.1.2 Company Website URL, if applicable
1.2 Objection to Sole Source Certification
1.2.1 Interested parties must present specific objections to the Sole Source certification using the
criteria listed above.
1.2.2 A statement regarding the Interested Party's capabilities as related to this Sole Source
Certification Request.
1.2.3 Comments will be accepted at any time prior to Tuesday, May 12, 2026 at 10:00 am (Central
Time). Comments should be addressed to:
Jeff Wells, Procurement Manager
The University of Mississippi Procurement Services
164 Jeanette Phillips Drive
PO Box 1848
University, Mississippi 38677
1.2.4 Responses may be delivered by hand, via regular mail, overnight delivery, or e-mail at
solesource@olemiss.edu with cc: to bids@olemiss.edu and must reference the sole source
number.
1.2.5 UM WILL NOT BE RESPONSIBLE FOR DELAYS IN THE DELIVERY OF RESPONSES. It is solely the
responsibility of the Interested Parties that responses reach UM on time. Interested parties
may contact Jeff Wells at 662-915-7448 to verify the receipt of their responses. Responses
received after the deadline will be rejected.
If after a review of the submitted notice and documents, UM determines that the commodity in the
proposed sole source request can be provided by another person or entity, then UM will withdraw the
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sole source certification and submit the procurement of the commodity to an advertised competitive
bid or selection process.
If UM determines after review that there is only one (1) source for the required purchase, then UM will
follow applicable ITS procedures for making the purchase.
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