News
"The Mission Driven Bank Fund today announced its initial investments in Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and Minority Depository Institution (MDI) banks committed to expanding financial services in underserved communities. The Fund aims to help close the racial wealth gap by meeting the banks' needs through below-market and flexible investment vehicles and subsidized technical services curated to build sustainable change for the sector.
The Fund, encouraged by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), and anchored by Microsoft and Truist, recently announced its first investor close at the end of last year. While it is raising more capital throughout 2024, it wanted to begin meeting the needs of its growing pipeline of CDFI and MDI banks right away.
Paul Welch, the Fund's portfolio manager, said, 'The Fund has been well received by our mission focused bank sector and we look forward to continuing to support building capacity within their communities.'
Initial investments include:
- Embassy National Bank, an MDI serving primarily South Asian communities throughout the state of Georgia.
- Legacy Bank and Trust, a CDFI bank with locations in Missouri, Oklahoma, and Texas, and affordable housing and community development lending niches prioritizing majority minority communities, American Indian reservations, and persistent poverty counties across the country.
- Priority Bank, a CDFI providing rural, small business, and affordable housing mortgage loans in Ozark and Northwest Arkansas.
In addition to the $18 million in aggregate financing deployed into these banks, we believe they will start to benefit from the tailored technical services program designed to build organizational capacity and the growing network of vendor relationships the Fund provides."
The Justice Climate Fund, of which CDBA is a proud member, has been awarded a $940 million Clean Communities Investment Accelerator grant by the EPA!
CDBA, in partnership with Partners (PCG), will serve as the CDFI bank hub in coordinating these grants along with training and technical assistance. This role enables us to lead initiatives in environmentally friendly lending, providing a great opportunity to significantly benefit our communities.
"EPA announces eight selections under the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund's National Clean Investment Fund and Clean Communities Investment Accelerator through President Biden's Investing in America agenda
Justice Climate Fund ($940 million award), a purpose-built nonprofit supported by an existing ecosystem of coalition members, a national network of more than 1,200 community lenders, and ImpactAssets—an experienced nonprofit with $3 billion under management—to provide responsible, clean energy-focused capital and capacity building to community lenders across the country."
"The Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) is convening a meeting of the Community Development Advisory Board (the Advisory Board) from 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Thursday, April 11, 2024. The Advisory Board meeting will be held in Cash Room at the U.S. Department of the Treasury located at 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20220.
The function of the Advisory Board is to advise the Director of the CDFI Fund on the policies regarding the activities of the CDFI Fund. The Advisory Board does not advise the CDFI Fund on approving or declining any particular application for monetary or non-monetary awards.
Please use the following link to view the official meeting notice."
"On March 27, BankPlus and national disaster recovery nonprofit SBP, along with the City of New Orleans and partners, celebrated the groundbreaking of St. Claude Gardens II, a 39-unit affordable housing development aimed at fostering resilient, inclusive and sustainable housing opportunities in the Lower 9th Ward. The event took place at 2407 Tennessee Street.
BankPlus is providing a $6 million commercial real estate loan to help finance the project, and it is also investing in credits through the Low-Income Housing Tax Credit Program that will provide an additional funding source. SBP is leading the project's development and construction.
SBP plans to build St. Claude Gardens II using resilient-building techniques and materials, including metal framing, to fortify the homes against extreme weather conditions. Solar panels will help reduce energy costs and minimize the project's carbon footprint.
'At BankPlus, we understand the impact affordable housing has on helping communities to thrive – especially in New Orleans - and we are thrilled to deliver the necessary funding to make St. Claude Gardens II happen. These structurally-sound, resilient homes will improve the housing options in the Lower Ninth Ward for neighbors and help restore this vibrant community. We see this project as a symbol of our commitment to New Orleans and our neighbors here, and we can't wait to see St. Claude Gardens II completed.' – Jeff Ehlinger, Executive Vice President and Louisiana President for BankPlus."
- "If your FDIC-insured bank or thrift is considering submitting an application to the upcoming fiscal year (FY) 2024 funding round for the Bank Enterprise Award Program (BEA Program), you may find the following information helpful as you plan.
- The CDFI Fund anticipates opening the FY 2024 BEA Program application round in the spring of 2024. This will ensure that the CDFI Fund can review the applications and announce awards in fall of 2024.
- Only banks and thrifts can apply for the BEA Program. Bank holding companies and other financial institutions are not eligible to apply.
- BEA Applicants are not required to be Certified CDFIs to apply. However, the CDFI Certification status is a factor in the BEA Award calculation for most Qualified Activities.
- Applicants must have required ID numbers, including Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) and Employer Identification Number (EIN), and up-to-date login credentials for System for Award Management (SAM.gov), Grants.gov, and the CDFI Fund's Awards Management Information System (AMIS). First-time applicants should set up their SAM.gov, Grants.gov, and AMIS accounts today! See the 'Required ID Numbers and Accounts Needed to Apply to FY 2024 BEA Program' section below for more detail.
- Since program rules prohibit FDIC-insured banks or thrifts that are Certified Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) from receiving a BEA Program Award and a CDFI Program Award in the same 12-month period or a pending CDFI Program application, please plan accordingly. See the "Eligibility Requirements for FY 2024 BEA Program Applicants with CDFI Fund Awards" section below for more detail."
"The Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) is convening a meeting of the Community Development Advisory Board (the Advisory Board) from 1:30 p.m. to 4:30 p.m. Eastern Time on Thursday, April 11, 2024. The Advisory Board meeting will be held in Cash Room at the U.S. Department of the Treasury located at 1500 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20220.
The function of the Advisory Board is to advise the Director of the CDFI Fund on the policies regarding the activities of the CDFI Fund. The Advisory Board does not advise the CDFI Fund on approving or declining any particular application for monetary or non-monetary awards.
Please use the following link to view the official meeting notice."
"President Biden on Saturday signed a $1.2 trillion government funding bill to stave off a government shutdown, capping a frenetic sprint by lawmakers to pass the final batch of appropriations measures.
Biden praised the measure as a compromise, and 'good news for the American people. This agreement represents a compromise, which means neither side got everything it wanted.'
The House passed the legislation Friday with a bipartisan 286-134 vote, which spurred a push among some conservatives to oust Speaker Mike Johnson (R-La.).
The bill passed the Senate in a 74-24 vote early Saturday morning following hours of intense negotiations.
The legislation provides $1.2 trillion in funding for the departments of Defense, Homeland Security (DHS), Labor, Health and Human Services, State, as well as general government, financial services and foreign operations."
"House Appropriations Chairwoman Kay Granger (R-Texas) is stepping down as the head of the powerful panel, staff were informed on Friday, two sources told Axios.
Why it matters: Her decision comes shortly after the House passed its second minibus package.
- Granger, 81, announced last fall that she would not seek reelection for her congressional seat.
- She is the first Republican woman to lead the House Appropriations Committee.
The intrigue: Her exit tees up a race for the coveted gavel, with Appropriations members speculating Rules Committee Chairman Tom Cole (R-Okla.) and Rep. Robert Aderholt (R-Ala.) are likely to hop into the race.
- Multiple members of the Steering Committee said Cole is the frontrunner to be Granger's replacement.
- If Cole is tapped by Steering for the role, the speaker would be tasked with selecting his replacement to head the Rules Committee.
The big picture: The shakeup comes as the House Appropriations Committee begins its work on next year's appropriations bills following a struggle to get this year's over the finish line."
"The Michigan Bankers Association recently named Kenneth Kelly, chairman and CEO of First Independence Bank, as the recipient of the 2024 MBA Banker of the Year award. Kelly is also vice chair of the ABA board.
Under Kelly's leadership, the Detroit-based minority depository institution has risen to become the seventh largest African American–controlled commercial bank in the country, according to MBA. Kelly led First Independence Bank's national expansion efforts with bank branches both in Detroit and in the Twin Cities through an unprecedented multi-bank collaborative effort. Over the last several years, First Independence Bank grew from approximately $250 million in assets to more than $600 million."
"Federal bank regulatory agencies today jointly issued an interim final rule that extends the applicability date of certain provisions in their Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) final rule issued in October 2023. The agencies also requested comment on the extension.
To promote clarity and consistency, the agencies extended the applicability date of the facility-based assessment areas and public file provisions from April 1, 2024, to January 1, 2026. Therefore, banks will not have to make changes to their assessment areas or their public files as a result of the 2023 CRA final rule until January 1, 2026. This extension aligns these provisions with other substantive parts of the 2023 CRA final rule that are applicable on January 1, 2026. For example, all provisions about where banks are evaluated will now apply on the same date. Comments on the extended applicability date must be received 45 days after the rule is published in the Federal Register.
In addition, the agencies also issued technical, non-substantive amendments to the CRA final rule and related agency regulations that reference it. For example, one of these technical amendments clarifies that banks do not need to make changes to their public notices until January 1, 2026.
In October 2023, the agencies finalized updates to strengthen and modernize regulations implementing the CRA to better achieve the purposes of the law. The CRA is a landmark law enacted nearly 50 years ago to encourage banks to help meet the credit needs of their entire communities, including low- and moderate-income neighborhoods, consistent with banks' safe and sound operation."