Mission and scale aren’t mutually exclusive. Just ask the nation’s Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) credit unions.
CDFIs are mission-driven institutions focused on expanding access to affordable financial services in underserved communities. Certified by the U.S. Treasury, these institutions can be credit unions, loan funds, banks or bank holding companies, or venture capital funds. CDFI certification allows these institutions to access grants and funding that support lending, housing, and small business development.
A total of 362 credit unions, or roughly 8.2% of the industry, carry the CDFI designation, based on data from Callahan & Associates. Because this data relies on the 5300 Call Report, it reflects year-end reporting institutions but does not include Puerto Rican cooperativas; these are categorized by the CDFI Fund as credit unions but do not report to the NCUA. It also does not capture first quarter mergers or the newest CDFI certifications. As a result, this figure differs from the most recent CDFI Fund totals reported in January. According to Stacy Augustine, president of CU Strategic Planning, a Callahan company, the total number of CDFIs is currently in flux due to the ongoing recertification process and delayed updates from the CDFI Fund.
“The number of CDFI-certified credit unions is a bit of a moving target right now,” Augustine says. “The CDFI Fund has not released an updated list for several months, and we expect the next release to show a change in totals because the Fund has been processing recertification applications for all CDFIs.”
Despite the fact CDFI credit unions represent a relatively small share of all U.S. credit unions, they collectively serve 18.3 million members representing 12.6% of total membership nationwide. CDFIs credit unions are broadly distributed and span the full range of asset sizes, challenging the perception that mission-driven institutions are limited to smaller, community-based credit unions.
CDFI CREDIT UNIONS BY STATE
FOR U.S. CREDIT UNIONS | DATA AS OF 12.31.25
SOURCE: CALLAHAN & ASSOCIATES
- CDFIs credit unions operate across 44 states, with the highest concentration, 33 credit unions, in California. These credit unions have a broad national footprint despite relatively low overall counts.
- The top five states account for nearly 20% of all members served by CDFI credit unions.
- CDFIs span a wide asset range. Berean Credit Union ($191K, Chicago, IL) has less than a million in assets, whereas Suncoast Credit Union ($19.7B, Tampa, FL) has nearly $20 billion, reinforcing that scale does not limit mission-driven impact.
- Distribution across size bands remains balanced, with 246 credit unions reporting less than $500 million in assets, 116 reporting more than $500 million in assets, and 78 reporting more than $1billion in assets.
MEMBERS SERVED BY CDFI CREDIT UNIONS BY STATE
FOR U.S. CREDIT UNIONS | DATA AS OF 12.31.25
SOURCE: CALLAHAN & ASSOCIATES
- Florida leads all states with 3.7 million members served by CDFI credit unions, followed by California at 2.3 million.
- Despite their total count, CDFIs credit unions serve more than one in eight members nationwide, underscoring their role.
- Overlap with other designations is significant. A full 94% of CDFI credit unions are also classified as a low-income credit union (LICU) and 97% hold multiple designations.
CDFI support built for credit unions. CU Strategic Planning is the leading provider of CDFI certification, grant writing, and compliance support for credit unions. By helping more than 200 credit unions achieve CDFI certification and securing more than $1 billion in grants, the company has empowered credit unions to fulfill their mission of serving low-income and underserved communities. Learn how CU Strategic Planning can help your credit union achieve success in community development.