Vision
The vision of the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (the CDFI Fund) is an America in which all people and communities have access to the investment capital and financial services they need to prosper.
Mission
The CDFI Fund's mission is to expand economic opportunity for underserved people and communities by supporting the growth and capacity of a national network of community development lenders, investors, and financial service providers.
Overview
The CDFI Fund was created for the purpose of promoting economic revitalization and community development through investment in and assistance to Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs). The CDFI Fund was established by the Riegle Community Development and Regulatory Improvement Act of 1994, as a bipartisan initiative.
The CDFI Fund achieves its purpose by promoting access to capital and local economic growth in the following ways:
- through its Community Development Financial Institutions Program by directly investing in, supporting and training CDFIs that provide loans, investments, financial services and technical assistance to underserved populations and communities;
- through its New Markets Tax Credit Program by providing an allocation of tax credits to Community Development Entities which enable them to attract investment from the private-sector and reinvest these amounts in low-income communities;
- through its Bank Enterprise Award Program by providing an incentive to banks to invest in their communities and in other CDFIs;
- through its Native Initiatives, by taking action to provide financial assistance, technical assistance, and training to Native CDFIs and other Native entities proposing to become or create Native CDFIs;
- through its CDFI Bond Guarantee Program by issuing bonds to support CDFIs that make investments for eligible community or economic development purposes; and
- through its Capital Magnet Fund, which offers competitively awarded grants to finance affordable housing solutions for low-income people and low-income communities nationwide.
Since its creation, the CDFI Fund has awarded more than $5.2 billion to CDFIs, community development organizations, and financial institutions through: the Bank Enterprise Award Program; the Capital Magnet Fund; the CDFI Rapid Response Program; the Community Development Financial Institutions Program, including the Healthy Food Financing Initiative; the Economic Mobility Corps; the Financial Education and Counseling Pilot Program; the Native American CDFI Assistance Program; and the Small Dollar Loan Program. In addition, the CDFI Fund has allocated $66 billion in tax credit allocation authority to Community Development Entities through the New Markets Tax Credit Program, and closed guaranteed bonds for more than $1.8 billion through the CDFI Bond Guarantee Program.
» View the CDFI Fund's Fact Sheet (English / Español)
» View CDFI Fund Statement Non-Discrimination and Civil Rights Information
