(February 19, 2010, Alexandria, VA) National Credit Union Administration (NCUA) Board Chairman Debbie Matz and National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions (Federation) President/CEO Cliff Rosenthal today announced a joint audio conference, to be held on March 4.  The call is designed to provide low-income credit unions with specifics about the U.S. Treasury Department’s new Community Development Capital Initiative (CDCI).

Housed under the Treasury Department’s Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) Fund, the program seeks to promote increased lending, particularly to small businesses in low-income communities.  Under the new program, Treasury will invest low-cost capital in certain financial institutions, including low-income credit unions (LICUs) that are certified as CDFIs.  Those credit unions may apply for up to 3.5 percent of total assets at a dividend rate of 2 percent.

“This audio conference will be an excellent ‘how-to’ introduction for credit unions interested in this promising new initiative,” noted NCUA Chairman Debbie Matz. “Since details were first unveiled early this month, there has been tremendous interest. I strongly encourage credit unions to take this opportunity to learn more about how this capital could help them better serve their members and reach out to more consumers.”

“The Community Development Capital Initiative has great potential to strengthen low-income, CDFI-certified credit unions and help them expand their lending and services in America's hardest-hit communities,” Rosenthal commented. “The Federation encourages all low-income credit unions to seriously consider applying for this one-time program. I hope that all eligible credit unions participate in what I am certain will be an informative, interesting session on March 4.”

The audio conference is scheduled for March 4, 2010 at 2:00 PM EST, and is open to any low-income designated credit unions interested in applying for secondary capital from the Treasury Department’s Community Development Capital Initiative, whether they be CDFI-certified or not.

There is no pre-registration required for this call; interested credit unions should simply call the toll-free number to access the 60-minute audio conference.

What:                      Community Develoment Capital Initiative Information for CUs
When:                     March 4, 2010, 2:00PM EST
Call-in number:     (877) 293-6129
Conference ID:     58577856

Additional details about the initiative are also available on this website, by clicking here.

© 2010 National Federation of Community Development Credit Unions.