My name is John Holdsclaw, IV, President of the CDFI Coalition, and I am the Executive Vice President of Strategic Initiatives at the National Cooperative Bank, a leading financial institution dedicated to providing banking solutions to cooperatives, their members, and socially responsible organizations nationwide. Thank you for this opportunity to testify on the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI) Fund and the success of CDFIs in delivering financial services to underserved low-income urban, rural, and tribal communities.
Residents of Indian Country face significant challenges in securing commercial credit, including
significantly longer distances from brick-and-mortar financial institutions and poor and limited internet for mobile or online banking. This is compounded by a lack of equity resources, collateral, and credit history; experiences and perceptions among Native entrepreneurs that commercial bank financing is difficult to secure; and a lack of diversity in funding sources.3 According to an analysis of 2018 Census and Bureau of Labor data by the National Community Reinvestment Coalition, Native Communities experience the highest rates of unemployment (6.6 percent) and poverty (25.4 percent) among minority groups. Native CDFIs are often the only resources for financial products and services in tribal communities.
