Welcome to the 2025 CDBA Peer Forum website! Thank you for attending the largest annual gathering of CDFI, MDI, and other mission-focused bank representatives.
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Advocacy Day and Pre-Conference Cocktail Reception: Tuesday, June 3rd, 2025 Peer Forum Conference: Wednesday, June 4th, 2025 and Thursday, June 5th, 2025 Meeting Location: National Housing Center (NHC) Auditorium at: 1201 15th St NW, 1st floor, Washington, DC 20005 Attire: Business casual for all Peer Forum activities
Hotel Information: The National Housing Center is located in downtown, Washington D.C., within walking distance of a variety of hotels offering rooms at a wide range of price points. We invite you to explore some of the options in our “Hotel Options List.” Please note that CDBA has not arranged a room block at any individual hotels for this event.
If you have any questions or concerns regarding Advocacy Day, please email Joey Zeldin at zeldinj@pcgloanfund.org.
Schedule:
June 3: Advocacy Day & Pre-Conference Cocktail Reception at 5:30 pm ET
June 4: Sessions from 8:00 am to 5:00 pm ET
Cocktail reception at 6:00 pm ET followed by dinner at 7:30 pm ET at Zaytinya
Effective advocacy doesn’t just happen—it starts in your own backyard before moving on Capitol Hill. This session will focus on building strong local and state advocacy strategies that amplify your institution’s impact and help build long-term relationships with policymakers. The conversation will explore tactics for engaging elected officials, aligning messaging with community needs, and mobilizing local stakeholders to support mission-driven banks.
Mission-driven banking require mission-aligned teams—but recruiting and retaining talent in today’s labor market is no small feat. This session will explore how community development banks are cultivating internal cultures that attract purpose-driven professionals and support long-term staff engagement. The panel will discuss practical strategies for hiring, leadership development, and aligning HR practices with community-focused values.
Across the country, lenders are deploying innovative strategies to expand access to affordable credit and financial services. This session will highlight how mission-focused banks are using data, technology, and community partnerships to serve overlooked and underserved markets. The workshop will explore scalable approaches to inclusive lending and the measurable impact on financial health.
FICO (NYSE: FICO) is a leading analytics software company, helping businesses in 90+ countries make better decisions that drive higher levels of growth, profitability and customer satisfaction.FICO’s groundbreaking use of Big Data and mathematical algorithms to predict consumer... Read More →
The Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) can be a powerful tool for strengthening and growing your CDFI bank—if you know how to use it strategically. This session will explore how banks can align CRA obligations with their mission, attract investments, and deepen community impact, including through innovative tools like the ACT Deposit Program.
At IntraFi Network, we provide solutions that deliver the flexibility that financial institutions, their customers, and their communities need to thrive in today’s market. We are a trusted partner to nearly 3,000 of the nation’s banks, other financial institutions and most minority... Read More →
Financial counseling is a powerful tool for improving household financial stability—but how do we measure its effectiveness at scale? This session will explore data-driven approaches to evaluating financial counseling programs, from tracking client outcomes to integrating counseling with banking products and services. With CDFI certification requirements narrowing the focus for development services, it’s more important than ever to demonstrate the impact of financial counseling.
As the CDFI Fund continues to evolve, staying ahead of programmatic and policy changes is essential for strategic planning and compliance. This session will unpack recent trends in CDFI Fund programs—highlighting shifts in funding priorities, application criteria, and performance expectations. The discussion will provide timely insights to help CDFIs position themselves for success in an increasingly competitive funding environment.
SWC is a leading Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI) consulting firm for banks. Our clients are community banks that serve historically underserved and economically distressed communities with a variety of unmet financial needs. In order to meet these challenges, we... Read More →
How do you communicate the powerful work your bank does in a way that resonates with both policymakers, partners and the public? This session will explore how to identify compelling impact stories, center the voices of borrowers and communities, and create narratives that highlight the unique role CDFI banks play in driving equitable development. Hear from marketing and communications leaders inside and outside the industry about techniques that work—and how to avoid common pitfalls.
Nonprofit affiliates can be powerful vehicles for driving community impact, and will play a central role in many ECIP institutions’ Treasury disposition—but setting one up requires careful legal, financial, and strategic planning. This session will walk through key considerations for structuring a nonprofit affiliate that aligns with your bank’s mission while maintaining compliance and sustainability.
As technology becomes more deeply embedded in banking operations, robust cybersecurity measures are no longer optional—they’re mission-critical. Despite best intentions, many institutions remain vulnerable to increasingly sophisticated threats. This session, part of the Programs Track, will help your organization identify key risk areas and stay ahead of regulatory developments shaping the cybersecurity landscape. The discussion will feature insights on practical strategies to safeguard systems, data, and customer trust.
Baker Tilly US, LLP (Baker Tilly) is a leading advisory, tax and assurance firm whose specialized professionals guide clients through an ever-changing business world, helping them win now and anticipate tomorrow. Headquartered in Chicago, Baker Tilly, and its affiliated entities... Read More →
