LATEST NCN NEWS

Calling on Native CDFI Leaders to Engage Congress to Ensure the Continued Flow of NACA Program Dollars in FY 2025 and 2026
July 14, 2025

NCN calls on all Native CDFI leaders and key partners to call your state’s U.S....

NCN CEO Pete Upton Urges Policymakers to Protect Native CDFI Funding in New Op-Ed
June 25, 2025

In a compelling op-ed published this week in Tribal Business News, Pete Upton, CEO of the...

NCN Shares Survey Results with Congress Documenting Impacts of Planned and Proposed NACA Funding Cuts on Native CDFIs and the Native Communities They Serve
June 24, 2025

Today, NCN shared with Congressional leaders and their staff a summary document featuring a representative...

Senator Elizabeth Warren addresses NCDFIs and her work on Broken Promises

DIFFERENCE MAKERS INTERVIEW SERIES

The Native CDFI Network (NCN) developed this series to cast a much-needed spotlight on the benefits that Native community development financial institutions create for tribal communities and the leaders who help make Native CDFIs the transformational success stories they are.

Interview #39: Alicia Burns | Westwater Financial, Inc.

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Alicia Burns, who serves as Executive Director of Westwater Financial, Inc.

22
Mar
Interview #38: Pamela Boivin | NiiJii Capital Partners, Inc.

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Pamela Boivin, who serves as Executive Director of NiiJii Capital Partners, Inc. (NiiCaP).

09
Mar
Interview #37: Nancy Jordan | Lummi CDFI

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Nancy Jordan, who serves as Interim Executive Director of Lummi CDFI (LCDFI), a certified Native CDFI based in Bellingham, Washington.

02
Mar
Interview #36: Jeff Gilbreath | Hawai’i Community Lending

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Jeff Gilbreath, who serves as Executive Director of Hawai’i Community Lending (HCL), a federally certified Native CDFI headquartered in Honolulu, Hawaii.

22
Feb
Interview #35: Kim Pate | NDN Fund

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Kim Pate, who serves as Managing Director of NDN Fund, the investing and lending arm of NDN Collective.

16
Feb
Interview #34: Chris James | National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Chris James, who serves as President and CEO of the National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development (NCAIED), which recently launched...

09
Feb
Interview #33: Jacqueline Pata | Haa Yakaawu Financial Corporation

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Jacqueline Pata, who is President & CEO of the Tlingit-Haida Regional Housing Authority, which oversees Haa Yakaawu Financial Corporation, a federally...

02
Feb
Interview #32: Leonard Smith | Native American Development Corporation

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Leonard Smith, who serves as Chief Executive Officer and founder of the Native American Development Corporation (NADC), a federally certified Native...

26
Jan
Interview #31: Charlene Virgilio | Four Directions Development Corporation

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Charlene Virgilio, who serves as Executive Director of Four Directions Development Corporation (FDDC), a federally certified Native CDFI based in Orono,...

10
Nov
Interview #30: Chrystel Cornelius | Oweesta Corporation

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Chrystel Cornelius, who serves as President & CEO of Oweesta Corporation, a federally certified national Native CDFI intermediary predominantly serving Native...

02
Nov
Interview #29: Tamra Marlowe | Chehalis Tribal Loan Fund

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Tamra Marlowe, who serves as Executive Director of Chehalis Tribal Loan Fund (CTLF), a federally certified Native CDFI based in Oakville,...

26
Oct
Interview #28: Colleen Steele | Mazaska Owecaso Otipi Financial

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Colleen Steele, who serves as Executive Director of Mazaska Owecaso Otipi Financial, a federally certified Native CDFI located on the Pine...

20
Oct
Interview #27: Robert Aitken | Leech Lake Financial Services

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Robert Aitken, who serves as Executive Director of Leech Lake Financial Services (LLFS), a federally certified Native CDFI based in Bemidji,...

13
Oct
Interview #26: Jonathan Zurek | Seneca Nation of Indians Economic Development Company

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Jonathan Zurek, who serves as Executive Director of the Seneca Nation of Indians Economic Development Company (SNIEDC), a federally certified Native...

29
Sep
Interview #25: Cindy Logsdon | Citizen Potawatomi Community Development Corporation

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Cindy Logsdon, who serves as CEO and Executive Director of the Citizen Potawatomi Community Development Corporation (CPCDC), a federally certified Native...

20
Sep
Interview #24: Alissa Charley | Hopi Credit Association

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Alissa Charley, who serves as Executive Director of the Hopi Credit Association (HCA), a federally certified Native CDFI that serves enrolled...

14
Sep
Interview #23: Rollin Wood | Native Partnership for Housing

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Rollin Wood, who serves as Executive Director of the Native Partnership for Housing, Inc. (NPH), a federally certified Native CDFI in...

07
Sep
Interview #22: Rjay Brunkow | Indian Land Capital Company

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Rjay Brunkow, who serves as CEO of Indian Land Capital Company (ILCC), which is based in Little Canada, Minnesota. A federally...

30
Aug
Interview #21: Mary Miner | Alaska Growth Capital

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Mary Miner, who serves as Vice President of Community Development for Alaska Growth Capital BIDCO, Inc., in Anchorage, Alaska. Alaska Growth...

25
Aug
Interview #20: Jeff Tickle | Cook Inlet Lending Center

In this latest edition of “Difference Makers,” NCN sits down with Jeff Tickle, who serves as General Manager of Cook Inlet Lending Center, Inc. (CILC) in Anchorage, Alaska. Formerly known as NaQenq’a,...

18
Aug
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WHAT WE DO

Since we formed in 2009, the Native CDFI Network has been creating opportunities for Native community development financial institutions (CDFIs) to share our stories, identify our collective priorities, and strengthen our industry. Our aim is ensure that Native peoples are represented in the national policy dialogue and to spread the innovative solutions created by CDFIs throughout our Native communities.

WHAT ARE NATIVE CDFIs?

Native CDFIs help Native American communities overcome systemic barriers to entrepreneurial success, such as a lack of physical, legal, and telecommunications infrastructure, access to affordable financial products and services, and limited workforce development strategies. The majority of Native communities, 86 percent, lack a single financial institution within their borders to access affordable financial products and services.

Over the last decade, Native CDFIs have proven themselves key in developing healthy, vibrant Native economies and communities. Entering markets normally considered “high-risk,” they help place communities on a path to success – creating businesses, jobs, homeowners, and serving as the catalyst for developing local economies. Their unique programs and services are designed to build financial assets in the low-income populations they serve and provide access to economic opportunities.

Learn More About native CDFIS

OUR POLICY PRIORITIES

As the only national member coalition Native CDFIs in the country, the Native CDFI Network seeks to grow and strengthen Native CDFIs through policy advocacy, capacity building and access to capital that supports the economic prosperity of American Indian, Alaska Native and Native Hawaiian communities. Our nine-member National Board of Directors voted at our NCN Policy Summit to approve two key policy priorities:

  1. Adequate Capital Access by NCDFIs to Serve Native Peoples
  2. Industry Partnerships & Capacity to Serve Native Peoples & Areas

Read more about the policy goals we’ve established and our plans for carrying them out!

Learn More

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