NSW Refugees who aspire to establish their own business in Australia now have the opportunity to do so with the support of not-for-profit organisation Thrive which launched operations in New South Wales on Monday.

Thrive, which aims to expand to Victoria later this year, will offer microfinance loans and business support services to refugees, ultimately giving them business and banking credentials and records which they can then use to apply for commercial loans.

Thrive Chairman and co-founder John Curtis said Thrive would fill a gap in the market for providing both financial and business mentoring support to refugees.

“The case for establishing Thrive was very compelling,” Curtis said.

“We know that refugees have made and continue to make a vital economic contribution to Australia, but we recognised that this contribution could be even greater if refugees were provided with the right business support services as well as access to finance.

“Refugees who are financially independent also make vital social connections and integrate into their local community more quickly.”

Launching Thrive in Sydney on Monday, Australian businessman David Gonski said there was a significant opportunity to harness the entrepreneurial spirit of refugees who arrive in Australia with a drive to succeed.

“Australia’s growing service-based economy presents an enormous opportunity for refugees who typically have years of experience running their own business,” Gonski said.

“Historically, it has been difficult for refugees to access financial services and understand the various requirements of entering the businesses market, but Thrive aims to break down these barriers – it is a wonderful initiative.”

Thrive CEO Mahir Momand, a microfinance expert and Afghan refugee, said refugees who come to Australia are well educated — at least 75 per cent have graduated from secondary school and 35 per cent have a graduate degree – and have a diverse range of skills.

“This is evident from the quality of potential loan applicants we are seeing,” Momand said.

“Many of them have service-based business backgrounds from hairdressing and beauty, to building consultancies, waterproofing, signage, and grocers. The diversity and quality of experience is very encouraging.”

Thrive has partnered with Westpac which has provided $2 million to be used for microfinance loans and a Chief Operating Officer to help establish Thrive as a stand-alone entity by developing all elements of its operations from credit policies to loan documents.