Invested in the South: CDFIs Building Assets, Strengthening Communities
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Save the Date: September 15-16, 2026 | New Orleans, LA
An Opportunity to Shape Regional Community Finance
Join us for Invested in the South: CDFIs Building Assets, Strengthening Communities, the first-of-its-kind gathering of Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFI), philanthropic partners, and policy leaders from across the South. An initiative of AFN South—a regional collaboration of the Arkansas, Louisiana, and Memphis Asset Funders Network chapters—this convening is hosted by Louisiana Asset Funders Network in partnership with Propeller, a nonprofit organization and business incubator located in New Orleans. This event will catalyze coordinated action on small business capital access, affordable housing finance, and CDFI ecosystem strengthening across the South.
Held September 15-16 in New Orleans, LA, this convening is intentionally designed to serve the full CDFI spectrum — from organizations actively pursuing CDFI certification to long-established certified institutions — recognizing that a strong regional ecosystem requires investment at every stage of CDFI development. Through this convening, we hope to leave with a shared regional agenda for CDFI collaboration, stronger relationships and trust among CDFIs, philanthropy, and policy partners, and create a foundation for ongoing peer learning and co-lending collaboration beyond the event.
We are excited to host this one-of-a-kind event, which will provide an opportunity for regional partners to share insights, elevate our collective understanding of the economic status of individuals living in the South, and explore collaborative opportunities to advocate for fair policies and resource allocation as a region. We sincerely hope your members are able to attend and help make this the first of many successful AFN South events.
For more information, please contact Brandon Rapp, LA AFN Program Officer, at brandon@assetfunders.org or Kara Wilkins at kara@assetfunders.org.
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