What Virginia CDFI Coalition does

The Virginia CDFI Coalition is a 501c3 nonprofit membership organization founded in 2021 and headquartered in Richmond, Virginia. It was formed when the Virginia General Assembly passed a $10 million budget amendment creating the Virginia CDFI Fund (now the Commonwealth's Capital for Communities Fund, or CCCF), administered by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development (DHCD). In response, a majority of Virginia-based Community Development Financial Institutions organized to establish a collective voice for community reinvestment; the Coalition filed for 501c3 status in September 2022 and now represents more than 25 CDFI member institutions statewide, governed by a board of majority women and persons of color and led by Board President Leah Fremouw.

The Coalition does not operate proprietary technology platforms or sell financial products directly. Instead, it functions as an advocacy and coordination body delivering four service lines: advocacy and education (educating policymakers and supporting the VA CDFI Fund), industry best practices and partnerships (developing analytical tools and joint funding opportunities), storytelling and market education (building the CDFI brand in Virginia), and convening (hosting the annual Virginia CDFI Summit). Member CDFIs — including Freedom First Federal Credit Union, Locus Impact, LISC Virginia, Bridging Virginia, Foodshed Capital, Appalachian Community Capital, BayPort Credit Union, and Capital Impact Partners — individually provide the underlying financial products (long-term loans, credit enhancements, microenterprise lending, affordable housing financing) to Virginia's low-income, BIPOC, and underserved communities.

The Coalition's revenue model is nonprofit membership-based: recurring membership dues from 25+ CDFIs supplemented by grants, including state appropriations via the VA CDFI Fund and federal channels such as the EPA's Clean Communities Investment Accelerator (a $500 million award was secured by Coalition member Appalachian Community Capital in April 2024). Strategic partnerships with Capital One (strategic planning facilitation and annual summit venue), Opportunity Finance Network (national advocacy), the Virginia Bankers Association, Virginia First Cities Coalition, and bipartisan federal support (notably Senator Mark Warner) anchor its positioning. Member CDFIs collectively deploy over $434 million annually in lending across urban and rural Virginia, with cumulative impact of 27,502 loans totaling $3.4 billion, 46,182 jobs created or retained, and 20,052 affordable housing units financed from 2005 through 2023.

Name

Virginia CDFI Coalition

Legal name

Virginia CDFI Coalition

Website

https://vacdficoalition.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Virginia CDFI Coalition is a 501c3 nonprofit membership organization founded in 2021 that represents 25+ Community Development Financial Institutions across Virginia, advocating for policy support, coordinating peer learning, and convening stakeholders to expand economic opportunity in low-income and BIPOC communities.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Virginia

HQ country

El Salvador

HQ region

Latin America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership dues and grants: The coalition operates as a 501c3 nonprofit organization funded through membership dues from its 25+ member CDFIs and grants. The Virginia CDFI Fund (now called Commonwealth's Capital for Communities Fund), administered by the Virginia Department of Housing and Community Development, provides capital to member CDFIs. The coalition also benefits from federal funding through the CDFI Fund and EPA grants channeled to member organizations like Appalachian Community Capital.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels2 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

The Virginia CDFI Coalition is a 501c3 nonprofit membership organization that serves as the collective voice for more than 25 Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) across Virginia. It advocates for greater awareness of CDFI activities, supports member organizations through peer support, education, and best-practices development, and convenes the annual Virginia CDFI Summit. The coalition does not directly lend but coordinates advocacy, partnerships, and storytelling on behalf of its members, who collectively provide loans, credit enhancements, and financial services to underserved Virginia communities.

Product overview

The Virginia CDFI Coalition is an advocacy and coalition organization (501c3) that does not offer a single unified product but rather serves as a collective voice for more than 25 Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) across Virginia. The Coalition's primary "product" is the advocacy for and administration support of the Virginia CDFI Fund (also called the Commonwealth's Capital for Communities Fund - CCCF), a state-funded program that provides capital to member CDFIs for lending to small businesses, housing development, and community revitalization. The Coalition also provides member services including industry best practices development, storytelling and market education initiatives, and convenes the annual Virginia CDFI Summit. Member CDFIs individually offer financial products such as long-term loans and credit enhancements to BIPOC communities and underserved areas.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Virginia CDFI Fund (Commonwealth's Capital for Communities Fund - CCCF) A state-funded capital program that provides CDFIs and other financial entities with capital to enhance their ability to offer flexible and affordable financing to small businesses, housing development projects, and community revitalization real estate projects in Virginia.
• Annual Virginia CDFI Summit An annual gathering of CDFIs, policymakers, philanthropic partners, financial institutions, and community investors for dialogue on economic prosperity and equitable finance in Virginia.
• Advocacy and Education Services Coalition-driven advocacy supporting the Virginia CDFI Fund at DHCD, educating policymakers on the value and work of CDFIs, and representing Virginia CDFI industry interests in local, state, and federal economic development, investment, and financing programs.
• Industry Best Practices and Partnerships Program Coalition initiative to develop analytical tools reflecting CDFI impact, share member experiences and innovations, identify joint funding opportunities, and partner on collaborative lending projects across Virginia.
• Storytelling and Market Education Coalition program to tell borrowers' and partners' stories and build the CDFI brand across Virginia through digital content, media engagement, and storytelling campaigns.

Quantifiable outcome

• 27,502 loans totaling $3.4B to businesses and consumers (2005-2023)
• +3 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Seven partnerships are on record, tiered core and minor.

• Appalachian Community CapitalcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 4 April 2024Appalachian Community Capital (ACC), a member of the Virginia CDFI Coalition, received a $500 million award from the EPA's Clean Communities Investment Accelerator to establish the Green Bank for Rural America. ACC is a CDFI lending intermediary with 35 member CDFIs managing over $2 billion in assets.
• Opportunity Finance Network (OFN)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerOFN is the nation's leading investment intermediary and network of community development financial institutions. Virginia CDFI Coalition works with OFN on policy advocacy, and OFN received a $2.29 billion award from EPA's Clean Communities Investment Accelerator for building the CDFI ecosystem.
• CameominorOthersCameo is listed as an organizational partner in supporting the Virginia CDFI Coalition's mission.
• Virginia Bankers AssociationcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Virginia Bankers Association is a member and supporter of the Virginia CDFI Coalition, advocating for CDFI funding and representing banking industry support for community development.
• Virginia First Cities CoalitioncoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerVirginia First Cities, consisting of seventeen of Virginia's older core cities, is a founding member of the Virginia CDFI Coalition and strong supporter of the VA CDFI Fund.
• LISC (Local Initiatives Support Corporation) VirginiacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLISC Virginia is a member of the Virginia CDFI Coalition. LISC has partnered with programs like the Expand 757 Small Business Loan Program (0% loans), B-Force Accelerator (12-week intensive course for Black and Latinx businesses), and the Community Resilience Innovation Challenge ($1 million available to businesses).
• Member CDFIs (25+ organizations)coreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe coalition includes over 25 CDFI member organizations including Appalachian Community Capital, Bank of Hope, BayPort Credit Union, Bridging Virginia, Capital Impact Partners, CF Enterprises, CICVIlle, CBP Online, Democracy FCU, DCCU, ECDC, Foodshed Capital, Fountain Fund, Freedom First FCU, Habitat for Humanity Richmond, Humankind, LEDC Metro, LISC Virginia, Locus Impact, Peoples Advantage FCU, People Inc., Piedmont Housing Alliance, RHFCU, Rochdale Capital, RVAfinancial, SERCAP, SCCFVA, The Social Justice Investor, Vibrant Communities, Tap Into Hope, Virginia Bankers Association, Virginia First Cities Coalition, and WACIF.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves7 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Broad incumbents

• Capital Impact Partners: National CDFI providing financing for community development. Capital Impact Partners is both a Coalition member and a broader incumbent — its scale and product range (multi-state lending, partnerships, programs like the Expand 757) position it as an established peer operating beyond the Coalition's Virginia scope.
• Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC): Major national CDFI with local offices in Virginia (LISC Virginia is a Coalition member). LISC operates as a much larger incumbent across many states, offering overlapping community development finance capabilities but as part of a national portfolio rather than a state coalition.
• Enterprise Community Partners: Large national CDFI focused on affordable housing and community development. Comparable to LISC as a broad incumbent with overlapping mission in affordable housing and community development finance, but operating as a national organization rather than a state-level coalition.

Direct peers

• Opportunity Finance Network (OFN): National CDFI trade association and investment intermediary. OFN is the closest direct peer to the Virginia CDFI Coalition: both are membership-driven advocacy bodies for CDFIs, both engage in policy advocacy at state and federal levels, and OFN is explicitly listed as a Coalition partner. OFN operates nationally while the Coalition is state-scoped.
• Appalachian Community Capital (ACC): Regional CDFI lending intermediary with 35 member CDFIs managing over $2B in assets. ACC is both a Coalition member and a structurally analogous organization — a coalition of CDFIs advancing regional community development finance — making it the closest regional peer even though the geographies (multi-state Appalachian vs. Virginia) differ.
• National Community Investment Fund (NCIF): National CDFI trade and capacity-building association focused on community development banking. NCIF is comparable in mission (CDFI advocacy and member services) and offers a national analog to the Virginia CDFI Coalition's state-level advocacy and capacity-building work.
• CDFI Coalition: National advocacy organization for CDFIs focused on federal policy. A direct peer in mission — both advocate for community development finance institutions — but CDFI Coalition operates nationally and lacks the state-level fund administration and member convening role that distinguishes the Virginia CDFI Coalition.

Regional players

• Coastal Enterprises, Inc. (CEI): Maine-based CDFI providing business loans, lending capital, and consulting to underserved communities. CEI is comparable in mission (community development finance in underserved geographies) but operates regionally in Maine rather than coordinating a multi-CDFI coalition across an entire state.

Others

• U.S. Treasury CDFI Fund: Federal agency within the U.S. Treasury that administers CDFI certification, FA/TA/BE awards, and the New Markets Tax Credit program. Comparable as a funder/regulator at the center of the CDFI ecosystem that the Coalition and its members depend on, though it is a federal program rather than a peer coalition.
• Prosperity Now: National nonprofit focused on economic opportunity and asset-building in low-income communities. Comparable as an ecosystem/advocacy organization promoting community development finance policy, but does not directly coordinate CDFI lending coalitions like the Virginia CDFI Coalition.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/virginia-cdfi-coalition

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

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Frequently asked questions about Virginia CDFI Coalition