Assets held by Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs) shrank 3 percent between the fourth quarter of 2023 and the second quarter of 2025, according to a report from the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.
The report, called “Sizing the Community Development Financial Institution Industry: 2011-2025,” also found that the number of CDFIs declined by 6 percent during that period. Much of the reduction in both assets and the number of CDFIs was driven by a decline in the number of CDFI-certified credit unions between 2023 and 2025.
The report revealed that the nation’s 1,378 certified CDFI institutions held $446 billion in assets as of Q2 2025. Most CDFI assets are in CDFI-certified credit unions, which held $277 billion, roughly 62 percent of total industry assets. Certified loan funds were the largest group of CDFIs by count, comprising 41 percent of the industry, well below the peak of 62 percent in 2011.
“The modest decline in both the number of certified CDFIs and their assets followed years of steady growth for both,” Jonathan Kivell, director of community investments on the New York Fed’s Community Development team. “Much of this was driven by the decline in the number and total assets of CDFI-certified credit unions.”
The New York Fed’s Community Development team works to understand the economic experiences of lower-income households and communities to help build a stronger economy. Community development is one of the Federal Reserve’s core functions as the U.S. central bank.