18 About two-thirds of the banks also reported receiving some benefit from their lending unrelated to loan profitability, such as an improved image in the community. Since the Federal Reserve report, studies undertaken by the CDFI Data Project show that, for 2004, charge-off rates for CDFI portfolios were similar to those for the banking industry as a whole.
19 These studies and market data suggest that banks and other private organizations may become an increasingly significant source of competition for CDFIs. That is good news, not bad news. Indeed, the surest sign of a CDFI’s success is that private investors see viable investment opportunities in the neighborhoods in which the CDFI has been operating.