Latest Industry Developments

CARS™ is starting to build the 2011 ratings schedule. CARS™ augments investor due diligence by providing unparalleled detail and transparency. At the same time, the ratings process gives CDFIs deep insights into how investors assess the risk in their business models and can be a critical capacity building tool for organizations that plan to grow their balance sheets. Interested investors, funders, and CDFIs should contact Paige Chapel to schedule CDFIs for a CARS™ rating in 2011.

OFN Submits Comments on CDFI Fund Authorizing Statute
OFN recently submitted a comment letter to the CDFI Fund in response to their request for comment regarding the Fund’s authorizing statute. Last month, OFN solicited input from our Members on a Staying Connected Call in order to shape and guide our comments. We would like to thank all our Members for their thoughtful, detailed input on the letter. View the final comment letter.

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Thank you to everyone who completed the CDFI Market Conditions Survey, 2nd Quarter 2010. By participating, you help ensure that you, your peers, funders, investors, and policy makers have the most accurate and complete information on what is happening in the industry today. The next Market Conditions Report will be published in early September.

The 2010 Opportunity Finance Network Conference will be held November 3-5, 2010 in San Francisco and the curriculum is now being finalized. More than forty CDFI practitioners and funders attended the Conference Kick-off event hosted by the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco and sixteen OFN Member CDFIs have signed on as Co-Hosts to advise on the curriculum and tours.

Conference Sponsors are committing their support, including sponsoring individual conference tracks (such as affordable housing and green finance). To become a Conference Sponsor, contact Gregory Schiefelbein at gschiefelbein@opportunityfinance.net.

OFN has Closed its First Loan Participation with ROC USA™
OFN has partnered with ROC USA™ to participate in mortgage loans to Manufactured Housing Communities converting from investor ownership to resident ownership. On June 17, 2009, OFN closed its first deal with ROC USA™. OFN purchased a $600,000 participation in a four party, mortgage loan of $5.4 MM to a newly-formed corporation, Ryder Woods Resident Association, controlled by the residents, which is a 174-unit manufactured housing community located in Milford, Connecticut.

The 2009 Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) State Legislation and Advocacy Guide is now available for download! This rich resource, now in its fourth year of publication, tracked legislation across a broad range of categories in which CDFIs are active participants. This year, the guide contains nearly 300 bills, as well as analysis of regional, year-to-year, and cumulative trends, as well as separate sections dedicated to analyzing subject matter areas of significant relevance to the CDFI industry including asset accumulation, affordable housing, mortgage lending, small business development, and others.

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Save the Date! The 2010 OFN Conference will be held November 2–5, 2010 at the Hyatt Regency San Francisco. For more information, click here.

Opportunity Finance Network would like to thank the Citi Foundation for their generous support of OFN's CDFI Stabilization and Growth Initiative. The Foundation's funding enables OFN to provide consulting, peer-sharing, and training to CDFIs and the CDFI industry, especially around risk management. As part of the Initiative, the Citi Foundation is a Gold Sponsor of the 2010 Opportunity Finance Network Conference, and supports OFN's Regional Meetings and monthly Staying Connected Calls. In addition, the Citi Foundation support underwrites OFN's 2010 strategic planning process.

Opportunity Finance Network has already approved almost $5.9 million in financing to 6 CDFIs (including 3 loans totaling $1.6 million for Manufactured Housing Communities) that finance affordable housing, community facilities, and small businesses in low-income communities throughout the U.S. We've also closed 6 loans in 2009 for a total $11.4 million (including 2 loans totaling $7.5 million for the 2008 Wachovia NEXT Awards for Opportunity Finance).

CDFI Found Announces Native American CDFI Assistance Awards
On April 30, Senator Jeff Bingaman (D-NM), accompanied by CDFI Fund Director Donna Gambrell, announced $10.3 million in awards under the Fund's Native American CDFI Assistance (NACA) program. The announcement, which was made at the Indian Pueblo Cultural Center in Albuquerque, New Mexico, celebrated the 45 Native organizations that received awards during the 2010 funding round.

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What a PR year it’s been. Opportunity finance has consistently been in the news. Check our online clippings regularly to see what the media is saying about us now.

We are pleased to release the latest edition of Inside the Membership: 2008 Statistical Highlights from OFN Membership. OFN Members continued to finance those who are overlooked by traditional lenders with FY 2008 financing for the network totaling $2.23 billion. Cumulative financing for the network reached $23.5 billion through FY 2008. Inside the Membership is an overview of fiscal year member data obtained through the annual OFN Member survey.

OFN would like to thank the following donors for their generous support:

• Bank of America for its sponsorship of the 2009 and 2010 Opportunity Finance Network Conferences.
• The Citi Foundation for its support of the CDFI Stabilization and Growth Initiative.
• The JPMorgan Chase Foundation for its support of CARS™.
• The Ford Foundation for its support of OFN’s Quarterly CDFI Market Conditions Report.

See all our generous donors.