Last week, New Orleans-based Rebirth Financial was featured in Forbes. The article highlights multiple case studies in which small businesses were unable to secure financing for future projects and turned to Rebirth Financial for help. 

Founded in 2008, the startup assists these borrowers by providing community-funded, peer-to-peer small business loans that average $80,000. CEO Chonchul Gupta describes it as a local stock exchange.

The contributor illustrates the service by describing a brewery owner’s situation:

“In the case of one New Orleans Brewery trying to raise the money to build a canning operation, local lenders could see something national banks couldn’t: people loved their beer, and were going to buy it in droves once it got into cans (they did).”

To learn more about Rebirth Financial, watch its FinovateFall 2011 demo.