Opportunity Finance Network and Mastercard Announce Partnership to Strengthen the CDFI Small Business Lending Sector

The initiative will develop new structures, systems, and solutions to transform small business lending within community development finance

WASHINGTON, Dec. 13, 2024 /PRNewswire/ -- Opportunity Finance Network, the nation's leading network and intermediary focused on community development investment, announced a partnership with the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth. The partnership will support the Infrastructure for Scale CDFI³ Innovation Initiative to transform small business lending. This two-year partnership will help create new solutions, capital, and financial products for small business-focused community development financial institutions (CDFIs).

"Small businesses are the backbone of our economy, yet millions of hardworking entrepreneurs can't access the capital needed to pursue dreams," said OFN President and CEO Harold Pettigrew. "Small business CDFIs provide critical financing for entrepreneurs starting or growing their businesses, helping them build wealth and create quality jobs. With the Center's investment in the CDFI³ Innovation Initiative, OFN will further develop the infrastructure for these specialized lenders and expand support for more small businesses in underinvested communities across the country."

OFN seeks to address the large-scale challenges affecting the CDFI small business ecosystem. With assistance from the Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth, OFN will support sustained industry growth and facilitate the flow of reasonably priced small business capital into low- and moderate- income communities. OFN is excited to participate in the Mastercard Strive USA community alongside other practice leaders in small business lending.

"Mastercard and the Center are deeply committed to supporting small businesses and entrepreneurs across the U.S.," said Sandy Fernandez, Vice President of Social Impact, Mastercard Center for Inclusive Growth. "OFN's network of CDFIs and mission-driven lenders has the unique ability to meet these entrepreneurs where they are and provide critical support through capital and technical assistance to nurture successful businesses. We're proud to support OFN's innovation initiative that will build the infrastructure for CDFIs to support more small businesses nationwide."

The years ahead will introduce unprecedented opportunities and pose significant challenges for the CDFI industry. The CDFI³ Innovation Initiative is structured to help CDFIs meet the moment ahead with new strategies, including:

• The creation of the Innovation Advisory Council to provide thought leadership and turn data-driven insights into scalable innovations.
• The establishment of the Innovation Center, an action tank that will take insights and promising solutions and seed them with capital and support.

Although the CDFI industry has grown significantly, the supply of affordable capital does not meet the scale of ambition among entrepreneurs in underserved communities. This partnership will specifically focus on transforming the small business ecosystem for greater scale, impact and capital to flow to historically underserved communities.

The CDFI³ Innovation Initiative will be at the center of OFN's strategic direction for the next five years and beyond. These programs will reinforce the industry's ability to foster financial health and resilience in low-income communities, expand entrepreneurship and affordable housing, and accelerate economic opportunity. 

About Opportunity Finance Network

Opportunity Finance Network (OFN) is the nation's leading network and intermediary focused on community development investment, managing over $1 billion in total assets and a membership of more than 450 community development financial institutions (CDFIs), which includes community development loan funds, credit unions, green banks, banks, minority depository institutions, and venture capital funds. Our network of CDFIs works to ensure communities underserved by mainstream finance have access to affordable, responsible financial products and services, with a deep focus on serving rural, urban, and Native communities across the United States. OFN is a trusted investment partner to the public, private, and philanthropic sectors – foundations, corporations, banks, government agencies, and others – and, for 40 years, has helped partners invest in communities to catalyze change and create economic opportunities for all.

Since its founding in 1986, OFN members have originated over $110 billion in financing, helping to create or maintain more than 3 million jobs, start or expand more than 850,000 businesses and microenterprises, and support the development or rehabilitation of nearly 2.4 million housing units and more than 14,000 community facility projects.

SOURCE Opportunity Finance Network