MIAMI, FL.—Two U.S. financial institutions–Latino Community Credit Union, Durham, North Carolina, and ACCION Texas, San Antonio, Texas–are sharing $8.25 million in investments as winners of an unprecedented new prize presented by the Opportunity Finance Network (OFN) and funded by The Wachovia Foundation and the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation.
The Wachovia NEXT Awards for Opportunity Finance were announced Wednesday evening at the Opportunity Finance Network conference taking place this week at the InterContinental Hotel in Miami. The Wachovia NEXT Awards recognize community development financial institutions (CDFIs), or "opportunity finance institutions," that have exceptional track records and extraordinary potential.
Opportunity finance institutions lend to and invest in small businesses, affordable housing, and community facilities and services such as schools, child care and health care facilities.
The two awardees are:
Latino Community Credit Union (LCCU), of Durham, North Carolina, which will receive a $5.5 million prize to support its rapid expansion. Founded in 2002 in response to violence against Latino residents in North Carolina, LCCU now has more than 42,000 members. It was the first multicultural financial institution in North Carolina to provide all of its services in Spanish and English, without discriminating in pricing. LCCU now also serves African and European populations. LCCU has branches in Durham, Charlotte, Raleigh, Greensboro and Fayetteville and plans to expand to three new markets with the help of the investment provided by this Wachovia NEXT Award. LCCU partners with the State Employees Federal Credit Union in an innovative partnership that has made its meteoric growth possible.
ACCION Texas, of San Antonio, Texas, which will receive a $2.75 million prize to extend its microlending reach and to grow its business partnerships outside of Texas. ACCION Texas uses an automated underwriting system and business model to distinguish itself in a challenging financial segment, providing credit to small businesses that do not have access to loans from commercial sources. The organization makes business loans from $500 to $50,000 for working capital, equipment purchase, inventory and other business needs. ACCION Texas has distributed over $58 million in more than 8,100 loans to clients in Texas, helping micro-entrepreneurs strengthen their businesses, stabilize their incomes, create additional employment and contribute to the economic revitalization of their communities. ACCION Texas has 12 offices in ten cities and serves clients in over 80 counties throughout Texas.
In June 2007, The Wachovia Foundation committed a $16.75 million grant and the MacArthur Foundation committed $25 million in a low-cost, long-term loan called a program-related investment to fund the Wachovia NEXT Awards for Opportunity Finance through 2011.
"The first winners of the Wachovia NEXT Awards are innovative, up-and-coming community development financial institutions that create economic opportunity for families and neighborhoods," said Ken Thompson, chairman and CEO of Wachovia Corp. and board chairman for The Wachovia Foundation. "The Wachovia Foundation recognizes the important role the CDFI industry plays in strengthening communities. We are proud to support these exceptional winning organizations as they rise to the next level of excellence."
"The two winning organizations embody the creativity and innovation of the entire CDFI field," said Jonathan Fanton, president of the MacArthur Foundation. "They use capital, business acumen, and community-oriented solutions to bring greater economic security and opportunity to people of modest means."
Mark Pinsky, president and CEO of the Philadelphia-based Opportunity Finance Network, said: "The Wachovia NEXT Awards for Opp