CDFIs are specialized financial institutions that provide financial products and services to populations and businesses located in underserved markets. To be certified, a bank must demonstrate a primary mission of community development and serve one or more target markets, among other requirements.  Community banks comprise over 20 percent of the CDFIs in the nation.  

 CDFI Fund’s public-private partnership model aligns seamlessly with the Trump administration’s goals of revitalizing American communities, promoting job growth, and reducing regulatory burdens while ensuring taxpayer dollars are spent efficiently and with measurable impact. CDFI community banks have proven to be incredibly effective in leveraging and deploying their capital to hard-to-reach communities that are overlooked by larger financial institutions. CDFIs have a physical presence in all 50 states and U.S. territories, with 5,872 headquarters and branch locations nationwide. In a recent five-year period, CDFIs financed over 252,000 small businesses, creating or maintaining over 2.2 million jobs. 

The Emergency Capital Investment Program (ECIP) made approximately $8.57 billion in investments in CDFI banks and credit unions to enable recipients to provide loans, grants, and forbearance to small businesses, minority-owned businesses, and consumers, especially in low-income and underserved communities.  

Following an Executive Order questioning adherence to statutory mandates, the Treasury Department reaffirmed its support for the CDFI Fund’s mission. Treasury emphasized the Fund’s continued role in fostering economic opportunity, consistent with its authorizing statute and OMB’s revised grants policy framework.