News
Albina Community Bank and Beneficial State Bank are taking steps to increase impact in 2017 with several key leadership changes that build on the work of departing Albina CEO Cheryl Cebula. A 30-year banking veteran, Cebula joined Albina in 2003 and most recently returned the bank to strength and stability after the turbulent financial crisis. In preparation for Cebula’s March 31, 2017 departure to pursue other opportunities, her leadership roles are being assumed by Kat Taylor and Dan Skaff, co-CEOs of Beneficial State.
Listen to Lisa Servon, Professor of Urban Planning at the New School, discuss her new book, "The Unbanking of American" on NPR's Fresh Air. The book is an anthropological look at the world of informal banking alternatives targeted at low-moderate income communities. Dr. Servon immersed herself into this world and spent several months working a check-cashing business in the South Bronx and as a payday lender in Oakland.
CDFI-certified Citizens Bancshares is making progress exiting the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP). The $407 million-asset company paid about $3.2 million to redeem roughly 4,400 shares of preferred stock from the Treasury Department, representing a $152,000 discount. The company also paid about 11,000 to resolve all accrued and previously unpaid dividends. The Treasury still holds about 7,500 shares of Citizens' preferred stock.
Senate Democrats & Republicans alike have assigned new lawmakers to the Senate Banking Committee with Republican Senators David Perdue (GA), Thom Tillis (NC), John Kennedy (LA) and Democratic Senators Brian Schatz (HI), Chris Van Hollen (MD), and Catherine Cortez Masto (NV) have joined the panel for the 115th Congress. Democratic Senator Charles Schumer (NY) will depart to focus on his responsibilities as Senate minority leader.
This recent Next City article clearly articulates the value-proposition of community development banks, as financial institutions that take on a triple-bottom line approach, "providing social justice and environmental well-being at the same time as being financially sustainable." CDBA Member Beneficial State Bank is highlighted in the work they have done to attract customers who are focused on aligning their vision for an ethical economy with their personal finances.
Highlighting local coverage of Central Bank of Kansas City's seventh award under the New Market Tax Credit Program. To date they have allocated $251 million in credits on community development projects that support business growth and job creation.
The Treasury Department has significantly reduced its stake in Broadway Financial Corporation, the Banking Holding Company (BHC) of CDBA Member, Broadway Federal Bank in Los Angeles. The $413 million-asset bank recently disclosed in a regulatory filing that the Treasury sold about 4.7 million shares of its common stock, which reduced the Treasury's stake from 47.4% of total voting shares down to 29.3%.
This opinion piece focuses on the potential threats to CDFI Fund appropriations with proposed domestic discretionary spending cuts on the table in the 115th Congress and advocates for strong and coordinated action from the CDFI Industry as a whole to ensure the continuity of the funding stream.
Watch the video here.
CDBA Members are consistently on the cutting edge of new opportunities to maximize and publish the social impact that they are having in local communities across the country. Therefore it is fitting that City First Bank & Southern Bancorp are two of the first institutional members to join Mighty, a new platform that will help "small but powerful" banks to connect with potential depositors or investors, especially among the Millennial demographic, who are seeking a bank that makes a positive social impact.