Update March 31, 2021: The Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) staff will hold an informational pre-application webinar for the Small Dollar Loan Program on Tuesday, April 13, 2021. Topics covered will include setting up your critical SAM.gov and Grants.gov accounts, adjusting your organizational profile in the Awards Management Information System (AMIS), and other ways your organization can prepare in advance for the FY 2021 application round.
Small Dollar Loan Program Pre-Application Webinar
Advance registration is not required to participate in the webinar. Please access the webinar, using the link provided below, at least five minutes prior to the beginning of the webinar. Requests for reasonable accommodations under section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act should be directed to Jay Santiago at the CDFI Fund at 202-653-0300.
Viewing this webinar requires the use of WebEx. To download the Webex Meetings Desktop Application, please see the instructions on the WebEx Downloads webpage.
Date: Tuesday, April 13, 2021
Time: 2:00 pm to 3:00 pm Eastern Time (ET)
Access Details:
Call-In: 1-888-947-9963
Webinar Access: https://www.mymeetings.com/nc/join/
Conference Number: PWXW2104462
Audience Passcode: 1582391
Please read on below for additional important information about preparing to apply (originally published March 18, 2021).
Later this spring, the CDFI Fund will be accepting applications for a new grant program, the Small Dollar Loan Program. The Small Dollar Loan Program was created to encourage Certified CDFIs to establish and maintain small dollar loan programs and provide alternatives to high cost small dollar loans. For this program, small dollar loans are unsecured loans of up to $2,500. The grants may be used for two eligible activities, loan loss reserves and technical assistance activities.
Through the Small Dollar Loan Program, Certified CDFIs will use award funds to help unbanked and underbanked populations build credit, access affordable capital, and allow greater access into the mainstream financial system. Certified CDFIs may use these funds individually, or through a partnership between a Certified CDFI and any Federally Insured Depository Institution with a primary mission to serve targeted Investment Areas, or through a partnership between two or more Certified CDFIs. The CDFI Fund currently anticipates that up to $13.5 million will be available for the FY 2021 application round of the Small Dollar Loan Program.