CDFIs

The Biden Administration firmly rejects proposed cuts to key financial oversight and consumer protection agencies in the Republican-backed financial services appropriations bill for fiscal year 2025.

The Treasury Department's Community Development Financial Institutions Fund has introduced significant updates to the CDFI certification application, aiming to simplify the process and establish clearer standards for responsible lending and community development.

The Federal Reserve's vice chair for supervision said new definitions around community development activities and the ability for banks to invest outside their immediate assessment areas could be a boon to Native Americans and their communities.

A.E.A. Federal Credit Union in Yuma said it would acquire West Valley National Bank in a bid to expand into Phoenix and Las Vegas.

At a Senate Banking subcommittee meeting, Republican and Democratic lawmakers both promoted the mission of community development financial institutions and warned of upcoming threats to their funding and proposals to revamp the CDFI certification process.

Treasury's plan to overhaul the certification process for community development financial institutions will benefit the communities served by those institutions.

The fund, which aims to create a self-sustaining, nationwide secondary market for CDFI microloans, has made progress, but it remains far short of its goal, its managing director said.

In an exclusive interview, the moderate Virginia Democrat and co-chair of the Community Development Financial Institution Caucus touched on the future of community development, cybersecurity and nonbank regulation. 

Native communities want to launch or expand their own community development financial institutions but are running up against regulatory challenges and a lack of support from mainstream banks.

The effort, spearheaded by Democratic Sen. Mark Warner and Republican Sen. Mike Crapo, is the latest sign of the community development industry’s rising political prominence in Washington.

Community development financial institutions proved themselves indispensable during the COVID-19 pandemic. They have earned a seat at the table.

Community development financial institutions and minority-owned banks have long faced funding challenges, but billions of dollars of investment — spurred by Black Lives Matter protests — have given them an opportunity to increase lending by a factor of 10. Here’s how they can do it.

It may seem odd that Citigroup has created an online lending platform that matches small businesses with minority-run and other banks for no financial benefit. Yet company executives and observers say it makes sense.

Ando, a challenger bank focused on sustainability, is helping Virginia Community Capital Bank expand its 5-year-old clean energy lending program by finding a bigger pool of depositors who are eager to fund solar loans.

Community development financial institutions could do more lending in low-income neighborhoods if policymakers relaxed accounting rules, increased government support and encouraged more investment from hedge funds and other nonbank lenders.

The Minneapolis company recently advised a nonprofit on a $30 million issuance that will provide financing to developers building multifamily housing and community facilities. It includes a framework, which the bank intends to deploy again, for informing investors on how the money is being used.

Native American reservations have some of the country's highest concentrations of unbanked households. But tribes are finding ways to get their members access to capital — with or without banks.

The Treasury Department is awarding $1.25 billion to 863 community development financial institutions through the Rapid Response Program, which allows banks and credit unions to earmark funds for mortgages and business loans in underserved markets.

The Biden administration will award $1.25 billion to hundreds of community lenders in an effort to speed the economic recovery from the coronavirus pandemic, Vice President Kamala Harris will announce on Tuesday.

The funding requests break sharply with the Trump administration's calls to eliminate key housing funds and backing for community development financial institutions. The White House also wants to substantially increase the budgets of the Treasury Department and the Small Business Administration.