COVID-19 CDFI Grant Program

  • Flexible Funding for Smaller CDFIs

 OVERVIEW

The COVID-19 CDFI Grant Program focuses on providing crucial flexible funds to the smaller CDFIs in OFN’s membership.  These funds are intended to help smaller CDFIs withstand the COVID-19 crisis.

Priority will be given to CDFIs that:

  • have the hardest time attracting resources from public and private sources of funding;

  • are more vulnerable, with less operating and capital liquidity in hand than larger CDFIs;

  • serve low-income, low-wealth, or traditionally under-resourced communities and populations

The COVID-19 CDFI Grant Program is generously supported by Morgan Stanley.

Terms

The COVID-19 CDFI Grant Program will award a total of $4.9 million in unrestricted grants. Applicants must have had less than $20 million in total assets documented on their FY 2018 audited financial statements. Awards will range from $50,000–$150,000. Grant funds can be used for operations, loan capital, loan loss reserve, or any other purpose.

Eligibility

  1. Charitable Purpose
    The applicant is a US tax-exempt organization with a current 501(c)(3) determination letter from the Internal Revenue Service. If an organization did not have this tax status, it may be eligible if it is a U.S. Treasury CDFI Fund certified CDFI.

  2. Be an OFN Member 
    The applicant must be an OFN member.

  3. Total Assets
    The applicant reports less than $20 million in total assets from their FY 2018 audited financial statements.

Application Process

Click here for a PDF copy of the Small CDFI Unrestricted Grant Program Guidelines.

Applicants must submit via an online application. We will not accept hard copy documents. 

The final deadline to submit an application for the COVID-19 CDFI Grant Program is 11:59 PM ET on September 11, 2020. The online application function will become inactive after this deadline.

Timeline

September 11, 2020

Application Deadline (11:59 PM ET)

October TBD, 2020

Awardees Announced

 

 

 

Questions

If you have questions about the application process for the COVID-19 Grant Program, please email Seth Julyan or call 202.868.6920.

Become an OFN Member

Learn about eligibility and benefits, and submit an application here. Please email Anthony Wilder Puzzuoli with any questions.