Publications

This analysis of CDFI banks and credit unions is a companion piece to OFN’s 2015 longitudinal analysis of CDFI loan funds, “20 Years of Opportunity Finance, 1994-2013: An Analysis of Trends and Growth.” Using several data sources on regulated financial institutions, this study shows that CDFI banks and credit unions grew dramatically and demonstrated strong performance throughout the 20-year period, even during the Great Recession. Findings also show that CDFI banks and credit unions offer financial services benefitting low/moderate-income communities at substantially higher rates than conventional banks and credit unions.

Download a printable 8.5"x11" Infographic of the 18th Edition of Side by Side.

The 18th Edition of Side by Side highlights essential peer groups and key statistics of the over 200 Opportunity Finance Network Member institutions with data from FY 2015. This reference guide - FREE to OFN Members and Allies - is essential for practitioners, investors, funders, and others who assess the activity and performance of the opportunity finance industry. It is also a valuable tool for CDFIs and can help to plan and better understand their organization’s performance relative to their peers. OFN Members and Allies, please contact Jacki Fox at jfox@ofn.org for the purchase code.

This report provides information on 221 OFN Member CDFIs. The vast majority (195) of these institutions are community development loan funds with the balance being 23 community development credit unions, two community development banks, and a single community development venture capital fund.

Using quantitative and qualitative research, CDFI Futures: An Industry at a Crossroads explores these questions and more, discussing this inflection point for community investment and its future challenges and opportunities. The groundbreaking research was motivated by a view among many practitioners and investors that the CDFI industry is at a critical time of change.

Download a printable 8.5"x11" Infographic of the 17th Edition of Side by Side.

CDFIs foster social and economic progress—all the while offering investors one of the safest investments in the financial community. Based on Opportunity Finance Network Member data, this study shows that OFN Member CDFIs demonstrated strong community impact and performance consistently throughout the 20-year period, even during the Great Recession.

The 17th Edition of Side by Side highlights essential peer groups and key statistics of the over 200 Opportunity Finance Network Member institutions with data from FY 2014. This reference guide - FREE to OFN Members and Allies - is essential for practitioners, investors, funders, and others who assess the activity and performance of the opportunity finance industry. It is also a valuable tool for CDFIs and can help to plan and better understand their organization’s performance relative to their peers. OFN Members and Allies, please contact Jacki Fox at jfox@ofn.org for the purchase code.

Performance Counts is an industry-led collaborative effort to develop industry standards and best practices around financial statements and financial management, and serve as an industry forum for sharing information, documents, and ideas on these topics. The initiative includes a Working Group that develops financial statement standards, guidance, and best practices by CDFIs for CDFIs.

This paper is the third in a series addressing specific financial statement and financial management topics, with the goal of encouraging agreement and ultimate adoption of recommendations on how best to present CDFI financial information in a clear, standard, and transparent way.