CDFI FRIENDLY AMERICA
CDFI Friendly America is on a mission to bring the $152 billion CDFI industry to underserved communities in small cities and towns across the nation. In “CDFI Friendly” markets, nonprofits like CDFI Friendly Bloomington can identify opportunities for CDFIs, provide technical assistance to potential borrowers, or provide gap financing or additional financing incentives to lenders.
CDFI Friendly Bloomington has served as the pilot program for these types of markets, followed closely CDFI Friendly South Bend, CDFI Friendly Tulsa, CDFI Friendly Fort Worth, and CDFI Friendly Evansville Region. It’s expected that other CDFI Friendly communities will continue to pop up around the nation as the concept spreads.
Relying on this lean model allows our region to benefit from CDFI investment without the administrative or operational burden of standing up our own CDFI or the market restrictions required by the certification process.
Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIS) are great assets in their communities. But they can’t be everywhere, and they can’t always offer all the types of financing each community needs—affordable housing, small business & nonprofit organizations.
We bring CDFIs to your community and we make sure you know how to make the most of them.
—CDFI Friendly America
CHARACTERISTICS OF CDFI FRIENDLY COMMUNITIES
A CDFI Friendly Community is one that:
- Is full of nonprofits, small businesses, and entrepreneurs seeking to create positive change in their community; and
- Is traditionally underserved by CDFIs and stands to benefit from dedicated staff who can provide technical assistance, partnership, and advice from an organization that can help potential borrowers connect with CDFIs.
CDFI Friendly Bloomington has partnered with the City of Bloomington, The Indiana Housing and Community Development Authority, various local organizations, and even a team of graduate students at Indiana University’s O’Neill School of Public and Environmental Affairs to develop a network and a pool of resources that can help borrowers execute their ideas and help lenders to deepen their involvement in the community.
CDFI Friendly Bloomington 