Community Financial Institutions: A Corporate Partner in Community Development

Community financial institutions (CFIs) are essential in promoting economic and social justice in underserved communities. These institutions, which include credit unions and community development banks, typically offer products and services to meet their local communities’ needs—which helps create jobs, support small businesses, expand affordable housing, and offer historically underserved people a chance to grow their financial health.

Partnering with community financial institutions can be an effective way for companies to invest with a social impact focus, allowing them to support initiatives that promote economic development, financial inclusion and social justice in the communities they serve.

In a recent example of this model in action, Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, MilliporeSigma’s parent company, made a $20 million commitment last fall to CNote, a women-led impact investment platform, to improve economic access and opportunity in U.S. communities. The investment will support economic growth and opportunity in communities across the U.S. by providing capital to support BIPOC-owned (Black, Indigenous, and people of color) and women-led small businesses. CNote deploys investor funds into deposit and loan products at CFIs with a long track record of financial stability and serve low-income women and people of color entrepreneurs, fund affordable housing, and support other forms of economic inclusion.

Representatives from Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany, and CNote recently joined Mary Mazzoni, senior editor of TriplePundit, to discuss how companies can leverage CFIs to deploy social impact investments that make a real difference.

Watch the full recording here.

The participants include:

• Jeffrey Whitford, head of sustainability and social business innovation for MilliporeSigma, the Life Science business of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany
• Renee Connolly, chief diversity, equity & inclusion officer and head of innovation HR engagement of Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany
• Catherine Berman, CEO of CNote

Find out more about Merck KGaA, Darmstadt, Germany's diversity and inclusion program on its website.