LEAF’s Unique CDFI

Community Development Financial Institutions exist to do what traditional lenders will not: take disciplined risks in underserved communities. They finance businesses and housing projects that strengthen local economies but fall outside conventional underwriting standards. Their impact is measurable. For every $1 in federal funding, CDFIs leverage $8 in private capital. When investment in CDFIs slows, the effect is immediate—less capital reaches communities that both need it and know how to put it to work.  This short video shows what a CDFI is.

LEAF is a CDFI grounded in the belief that lasting economic health is built through broad-based ownership. Every loan,  technical assistance engagement, and partnership is designed to strengthen not just an enterprise but the community around it.

LEAF specializes in ownership models that anchor wealth in the community. Employee-owned businesses like Wholehearted Bookkeeping keep profits with workers. Cooperative housing, like CRECHE, and community land trusts, like the Avalon Land Trust, preserve homes for long-term stability rather than short-term speculation. Underserved entrepreneurs gain capital and skills to build durable enterprises whose benefits extend beyond a single storefront like Boston Flower Co. Food retailers like Chatham Harvesters expand access to healthy, affordable food.

LEAF’s strategy is: deploy capital through smart risk-taking to expand ownership and build community wealth. Through coordinated partnerships with the Commonwealth, impact investors, cooperative banks, and foundations, LEAF multiplies the reach of our investments.