Community Development CUs Get $5 Million Infusion of Federal Grants

WASHINGTON – Ten community development credit unions and support organizations will share $5.3 million in federal funding from the Community Development Financial Institutions program, helping to rebuild capital and expand services, the CDFI Fund announced Friday. The biggest credit union recipient is ASI FCU, which will use its $960,000 grant to rebuild capital and expand into New Orleans neighborhoods devastated by Hurricane Katrina, as well as hire Vietnamese- and Spanish-speaking branch managers. Generations Community CU, a young CDCU, will use its $955,000 grant to fund a mortgage program. Latino Community CU will use its $860,000 award to leverage new lending. Self-Help CU will use its $487,000 to attract additional deposits to support lending. Hope Community CU will use its $480,000 to expand into the Gulfport/Biloxi and Memphis markets. Other credit union groups receiving CDFI funding are: the National Federation of CDCUs ($600,000), Brooklyn Cooperative FCU ($394,000), Syracuse Cooperative FCU ($358,000), Hawaii First FCU ($99,000) and Independent Employers FCU ($98,000). Credit unions received almost 20% of the $27 million awarded in this year’s CDFI funding round, and have received more than $35 million in CDFI funding during the program’s 10 years.