FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

September 13, 2018
Contact: Alison Goebel, Executive Director
614-224-0187 

COLUMBUS, OH (September 13, 2018) - Greater Ohio Policy Center released a new report today, Building Assets: Ohio’s CDFI Industry, an independent analysis of Ohio’s Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs).  CDFIs are business-minded entities that lend money to people and in places where it is not readily available from conventional banks.  CDFIs are essential partners in stabilizing and redeveloping Ohio’s weak-market neighborhoods and cities.

As captured by Greater Ohio Policy Center, Ohio’s 18 CDFI loan funds have helped expand and create new businesses, and uncovered untapped markets.  CDFI lending has provided critical capital for community revitalization, affordable housing development, and the establishment of other important assets, like health, education, and daycare facilities in nearly every corner of the state.

Greater Ohio Policy Center found that from 2005 to 2016:

• Ohio’s CDFIs loaned more than $975 million in 80 of Ohio’s 88 counties

• CDFIs leveraged $5 of private investment for every $1 financed by a CDFI; that generated $4.9 billion in investments over 11 years

• CDFI lending helped develop 36,304 units of housing, and create or retain 17,240 jobs

Greater Ohio Policy Center’s report highlights that maximum CDFI impact can be found when vibrant community institutions are present, like banks, competent real estate developers, supportive community groups, and dynamic business and city leaders.

“Ohio’s CDFIs are strategic risk-takers with business acumen and deep familiarity with Ohio’s markets,” said Alison Goebel, Executive Director of Greater Ohio Policy Center.  “CDFI lending has been a key ingredient in turning around historically distressed neighborhoods across the state.”

To bolster CDFI effectiveness and further strengthen the ability of individuals and communities to access capital and credit, the report offers four recommendations to enhance capacity both within individual CDFIs and with potential CDFI partners.

Building Assets: Ohio’s CDFI Industry was made possible with support from JPMorgan Chase & Co., which has been a leading investor in CDFIs nationally. “As a global financial institution, JPMorgan Chase is in a unique position to collaborate with local CDFIs by leveraging not only our financial assets, but the expertise within our firm to make a difference as well,” said Alex Derkson, Global Philanthropy for JPMorgan Chase. “We see this partnership as a critical tool for expanding access to opportunity for those in underserved corners of the community and helping more people move up the economic ladder.”

To read the full report and access a 1-page impact summary, please click here.

###