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Valley First Credit Union, located in Modesto, Calif., received the designation as a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) last week and local officials said they believe this will help the local economy by providing its citizens with financial services to meet the needs of the economically disadvantaged.
"We're proud and excited to earn this designation on behalf of our communities and the people in them," Valley First Credit Union President/CEO Kathryn Davis said. "Our mission has always been focused on ensuring we can serve the most people in our communities, and this designation and focus on the underserved groups will take that to a new level."
According to Valley First ($884 million in assets, 73,480 members), the credit union will be able to use the CDFI label to its advantage by investing in the underbanked or unbanked Stanislaus County residents who need financial services most.
"Stanislaus Community Foundation recognized several years ago that there are major missing components to our economic ecosystem that prevent our community from pulling down significant public and private investments," Marian Kaanon, the Stanislaus Community Foundation's president/CEO, said. "One of those missing parts was a locally-headquartered Community Development Financial Institution. Valley First Credit Union recognized that they could fill this critical void by obtaining CDFI designation. Now that Valley First is a CDFI, they can help meet the needs of more local residents. It's a win-win for all of us."
One Stanislaus County official said the central California area is in dire need of the types of financial services that Valley First can provide by being designated as a CDFI.
"Stanislaus County has recognized for years the lack of access to capital for both businesses and individuals in our disadvantaged communities. This shortfall was apparent more than ever during the pandemic as so much of the federal and state business assistance programs never made it to these communities," Terry Withrow of the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors said. "We are so thankful and proud of Valley First Credit Union in their obtaining a designation as a Community Development Financial Institution. Having a locally owned CDFI will fill the missing link needed to expand our county's economy for all our citizens."
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Michael Ogden
Editor-in-Chief at CU Times. To connect, email at [email protected]. As Editor-in-Chief of CU Times since 2016, Michael Ogden has led the editorial team in all aspects of content strategy and execution, including the creation of the publication’s exclusive and proprietary research database of the credit union industry’s economic landscape. Under Michael’s leadership, CU Times has successfully shifted to an all-digital editorial product with new focuses on the payments, fraud, lending and regulatory beats. Most recently, he introduced a data-focused editorial product for subscribers that breaks down credit union issues into hard data, allowing for a deeper and more factual narrative for readers. In 2024, he launched the "Shared Accounts With CU Times" podcast, which offers a fresh, inside-the-newsroom perspective through interviews with leaders from the credit union industry and the regulatory world. He dives into pressing credit union issues, while revealing the personalities working behind-the-scenes to push the credit union world forward. His background includes years as a radio and TV anchor/reporter and a public relations and digital/social media manager, where he covered the food and music industries, as well as cooperatives and credit unions. Over the years, he has launched numerous exclusive video and podcast series, including a successful series of interactive backstage interviews with musicians at music festivals, showcasing his social media and live streaming production skills.
