September 2026
Bluestem Capital Fund Expands Total Fund Size to $375 Million, Increasing Capital Available to Gulf Coast Small Businesses
Houston-based SBIC, the first for Bluestem Equity, grows from its initial $262.5 million to support more lower middle-market companies in industrial services, manufacturing and distribution
Release
HOUSTON, September 30, 2026 — Bluestem Capital Fund, LP (“Bluestem Capital Fund” or the “Fund”), a Small Business Investment Company (“SBIC”) licensed by the U.S. Small Business Administration (“SBA”), today announced that it has increased its total fund size to $375 million, up from the initial $262.5 million established when the Fund received its SBIC license in September 2025. The Fund is the first SBIC sponsored by Houston-based Bluestem Equity.
The increase follows the Investing in All of America Act, signed into law in May 2026, which raised the SBA leverage available to a single SBIC license. The added capacity allows Bluestem Capital Fund to back more companies and larger opportunities across its core markets.
“Becoming an SBIC was a milestone for Bluestem, and growing the Fund to $375 million in its first year reflects both the strength of our pipeline and the confidence of our partners,” said Ben Tucker, Principal and Managing Partner. “Small businesses are the backbone of the Gulf Coast economy, and the SBIC program enables us to put impactful capital to work alongside the management teams who build them.”
Bluestem Capital Fund provides senior secured debt and equity to established, privately held lower middle-market companies, typically those generating $2 million to $15 million of annual EBITDA. Its focus is industrial services, distribution and domestic manufacturing, with an emphasis on the Gulf Coast region and rural markets. The Fund partners with experienced management teams for growth, acquisitions, recapitalizations and ownership transitions.
“The SBIC program is one of the most effective public-private partnerships in American finance,” said Scott Grass, Principal and Chief Credit Officer. “It gives us the ability to offer business owners a single partner across the capital structure, with debt and equity tailored to their plans rather than a one-size-fits-all loan.”
Established by the SBA in 1958, the SBIC program has helped finance companies such as Apple, Intel, FedEx, Tesla and Costco. SBICs are privately owned and managed investment funds that pair private capital with SBA-guaranteed leverage to invest in U.S. small businesses.
Business owners, advisors and sponsors interested in partnering with Bluestem Capital Fund can learn more at bluestemequity.com.
About
About Bluestem Capital Fund
Bluestem Capital Fund, LP is a Houston-based Small Business Investment Company licensed by the U.S. Small Business Administration. The Fund provides senior secured debt and equity capital to lower middle-market companies, with a focus on industrial services, distribution and domestic manufacturing businesses in the Gulf Coast region and beyond. Bluestem Capital Fund is the first SBIC sponsored by Bluestem Equity.
About Bluestem Equity
Bluestem Equity is a Houston-based private investment firm founded in 2020 by the Tucker family. The firm invests in and partners with small and mid-sized businesses, drawing on decades of operating experience in industrial services, equipment and distribution. For more information, visit bluestemequity.com.