Welcome to the Finance Fund Blog!James Klein, Finance Fund CEO, has been elected to a seat on the Executive Committee of the New Markets Tax Credit Coalition (NMTCC). The 48-seat board is comprised of members from leading organizations that utilize NMTC, lending institutions, investors, and business professionals. Klein’s duties include advising on policy and regulatory issues that affect the use [...]
On Wed., April 21, we proudly hosted several state legislators, community leaders and Finance Fund project partners at the Capital Club in downtown Columbus. It was an excellent opportunity to share how Finance Fund has positively impacted some of the state’s most distressed communities. We highlighted four partnership “success stories,” including Ohio Basic Minerals in [...]
For much of the past decade we at Finance Fund, continue to strategize about how to address the problem of stability in resource generation and flexibility in capital deployment. Numerous meetings, workgroups and consultants have always led us back to the same place – more assets mean more resources for those in need. We are [...]
Last week I attended the CDFI (Community Development Financial Institution) Institute held in Washington, DC. The Institute is “the” meeting for the various parts of the CDFI industry. It is put on by the CDFI Coalition which provides opportunity for CDFIs and their many partners, including the full spectrum of community development finance funders and [...]
Adversity is the first path to truth. (Lord Byron) In the midst of clamor, distress, insecurity, and despair, 2009 was a good year for Finance Fund though it was, by most accounts, unique and demanding. William Shakespeare said “Is it not strange that desire should so many years outlive performance?” If 2009 were to judge [...]
This is a pretty important day in the history of Finance Fund. We learned this morning that we have been awarded $50 million in New Markets Tax Credits from the CDFI Fund in the U.S. Department of Treasury. The funding will be used to offer low-interest financing for projects that revitalize both urban and rural low-income [...]
He does exist! I’m back from DC and am pleased with our activities while there. The week included two NMTC conferences (Novogradac and NMTC Coalition), a NMTC Coalition Board meeting, a couple of media interviews (Cleveland Plain Dealer and Wall Street Journal), a panel presentation at the Coalition conference, a fundraising breakfast with Rep. [...]
As my week in DC is winding up I wanted to share some exciting information with you. The morning of June 17th, I sat eagerly listening to Chairman Bernanke give a speech that substantially focused on Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI). Please check out the Chairman’s speech, as he gives his thoughts about CDFI lenders [...]
I begin today with two days at the Novogradic New Markets Tax Credit Conference talking about current hot button issues in the industry. The most prevalent is the recently release GAO report “Minority Entities Are Less Successful in Obtaining Awards Than Non-Minority Entities” that attempts to identify reasons for the lack of success. I have [...]
In yesterday’s USA Today, this story appeared. It is worth sharing in full. Stimulus money gives a boost to small start-ups By Sue Kirchhoff, USA TODAY LANCASTER, Pa. — The Community First Fund has spent 17 years proving that lending to poor people is good business. It may soon get millions of dollars in fresh [...]
|
