"Early-Bird" Registration Now Open!
35th Annual Conference on Serving the Underserved
June 10-14, 2009 | Phoenix, Arizona
Top Headlines
Federation Outlook for Community Investing in 2009
The Federation, a leader in the Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) movement, has just released its Outlook for Community Investing in 2009, highlighting the positive and negative trends facing CDFIs (which include credit unions, banks, loan funds, venture capital funds, and microenterprise funds focused on community development) in the coming year.
Among the positive trends are:
- Broad favorable media coverage of CDFIs in the current crisis, including articles and segments in Newsweek, Reuters, and NPR
- Efforts to obtain as much as $2 billion in new investment for CDFIs through the TARP and other economic stimulus funds.
- The generally strong financial position of CDFIs, enabling them to loan and invest where many banks have not
- Positive results reported for program- and mission-related investing
Adverse trends include recent attacks on the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) and a retreat by major banks from community investment and funding.
To read the full piece, please click here.
New CDCU to Serve Latinos Chartered in Atlanta
Organizing Interest Up, But Process Remains Difficult
(January 5, 2009 - Atlanta, GA) For over two years, organizers in Georgia have been working diligently with the National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions (Federation) to organize a new community development credit union (CDCU) that will serve the primarily low-income Metro-Atlanta Latino community. Efforts that began in 2006 have finally come to fruition as the Georgia Family FCU recently received its charter from the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA).
Paola Diaz-Torres, who will serve as CEO of the new CDCU, explained that their “goal is to break down the cultural and functional barriers that stand between low-income immigrant residents and mainstream financial services.” The new CDCU seeks to end the cycle of poverty that many new Americans are trapped in, by providing financial education, leadership opportunities, and culturally-appropriate financial products. “Our project aims to serve low-income individuals from the Hispanic community who struggle to build assets due to a lack of financial sophistication or access to affordable financial products,” she added.
The credit union is looking to start up a sizable operation with the capacity to serve a significant portion of the largely underserved community. Organizers are currently looking for additional supporters to help spread the word about their efforts and to serve as conduits to leverage additional resources for the credit union.
To read the full press release, please click here.
CDCUs Recognized at Bank on San Francisco Celebration
Initiative to Become Permanent City Program
(December 10, 2008 – San Francisco, CA) More than 130 people joined San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom and San Francisco Treasurer Jose Cisneros at the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco to celebrate the wrap-up of the highly successful Bank on San Francisco pilot program. Launched in September 2006, Bank on San Francisco has become a national model linking unbanked populations to mainstream financial institutions. Nearly 60 cities and states are currently working to replicate the program with their own “Bank On” campaigns.
With the leadership of the City of San Francisco and the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco, the program brought together 17 credit unions and banks operating throughout the city, including two community development credit unions (CDCUs): Mission SF FCU and Northeast Community FCU. Other credit unions involved in the program included Patelco CU, a Federation Community Development Partner, along with Redwood CU, San Francisco FCU, and Spectrum CU.
In just two years, program partners opened 31,247 new accounts with previously unbanked consumers. More importantly, 80 percent of those accounts (24,714) remain open with average account balances of $980. Total annual savings for the newly banked individuals exceeds $19 million.
To read the full press release, please click here.
OFN to Honor Rosenthal with Lifetime Achievement for Responsible Lending
(December 1, 2008 – New York, NY) The Opportunity Finance Network (OFN) has just announced that Cliff Rosenthal, President/CEO of the National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions (Federation), will be the recipient of the prestigious Ned Gramlich Lifetime Achievement Award for Responsible Lending. OFN will present the award to Rosenthal on December 10th at the OFN Conference in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
In the announcement, Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke and OFN President & CEO Mark Pinsky praised Rosenthal for his efforts as a community development advocate and his long-time work with community development credit unions and the Federation.
The Ned Gramlich Lifetime Achievement Award for Responsible Lending honors one person each year who has achieved remarkable success in promoting and implementing responsible financial services for low-income and low-wealth people. Created in 2007 to honor Gramlich, who had passed away that year, this award is OFN’s highest tribute.
To read OFN’s full press release, please click here.
