Community Development Banking News
CDFI Banking: Industry, Policy, and Beyond.
"The Federal Reserve Bank of New York today released a report quantifying sales of loans by Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs). The report, "Examining the Origination and Sale of Loans by Community Development Financial Institutions," finds the amount of loans originated by CDFIs more than doubled between 2018 and 2022, reaching $67 billion. The amount of loans sold by CDFIs also more than doubled during the same period, reaching $14.2 billion, the report finds."
"Today, the U.S. Department of the Treasury's Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) opened the fiscal year (FY) 2024 funding round for the Bank Enterprise Award Program (BEA Program). Application materials are now available on the BEA Program page of the CDFI Fund's website in anticipation of the publication of the FY 2024 Notice of Funds Availability (NOFA) in the Federal Register on April 29, 2024. The FY 2024 BEA Program NOFA states that up to $40 million is available in awards to eligible Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC)-insured depository institutions."
CDBA would like to congratulate members John Lewis (Harbor Bank of Maryland) and Arturo Ortega (Freedom Bank) on being named to the FDIC's MDI Subcommittee to the Advisory Committee on Community Banking.
"The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) today announced four new members of the agency's Minority Depository Institutions (MDI) Subcommittee to the Advisory Committee on Community Banking:
- John Tom Anderson, President and CEO, F&M Bank, Edmond, Oklahoma
- John Lewis, President and CEO, The Harbor Bank of Maryland, Baltimore, Maryland
- Alfonso Macedo, President & CEO, Ocean Bank, Miami, Florida
- Arturo (Art) Ortega, Chairman and CEO, Freedom Bank, Alamo, Texas"
"Today, Congressman Dave Joyce (OH-14) announced his appointment to serve as Chairman of the Financial Services and General Government (FSGG) Subcommittee on the House Appropriations Committee.
'I am honored to be appointed to such a critical and pivotal position on the Appropriations Committee. In this role, I will work with my colleagues to strengthen U.S. financial markets and ensure taxpayer dollars are spent responsibly. I thank Chairman Cole for entrusting me to lead our country back to a path of fiscal responsibility,' said Congressman Joyce.
The Financial Services and General Government Subcommittee has appropriations jurisdiction over a wide range of federal agencies—including the Internal Revenue Service, Department of the Treasury, District of Columbia, Judiciary, Executive Office of the President, Securities and Exchange Commission, Small Business Administration, Federal Trade Commission, Federal Communications Commission, Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, Consumer Product Safety Commission, Office of Personnel Management, and the U.S. Postal Service."
Why it matters: Cole will be tasked with leading the powerful panel that oversees crafting government funding bills [including the Department of Treasury and CDFI Fund]
- The shuffle comes after Granger — who is set to retire at the end of this term — decided to step down from the position shortly after passing FY 2024 spending packages."
"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."