Written by
22Beacon (Formerly Charter Schools Development Corporation)
22BEACON (FORMERLY CSDC) AWARDED $70 MILLION BOND LOAN THROUGH U.S. TREASURY BOND GUARANTEE PROGRAM
(Hanover, MD, October 4, 2022) 22Beacon announced today that it was awarded a $70 million bond loan from the United States Treasury Department’s Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) Bond Guarantee Program (BGP). The CDFI Fund is issuing three guarantees totaling $355 million, the largest issuance in the program’s history.
22Beacon is one of three CDFIs in a multi-party bond totaling $130 million, with Opportunity Finance Network (OFN) as the Qualified Issuer. In addition to 22Beacon, OFN will issue a $10 million bond to Community Ventures and a $50 million bond to Greater Minnesota Housing Fund.
This bond will enable 22Beacon to put long-term, low-cost, fixed-rate capital to work nationally to fund charter school facilities in underserved and distressed communities.
About the CDFI Bond Guarantee Program
Established by the Small Business Jobs Act of 2010, the CDFI Bond Guarantee Program responds to a critical market need-low-cost capital to spur economic growth and jump start community revitalization. Under the program, Qualified Issuers (CDFIs or their designees) apply to the CDFI Fund for authorization to issue guaranteed bonds worth a minimum of $100 million in total. The bonds provide CDFIs with access to substantial long-term, fixed-rate capital to reignite the economies of distressed communities.
The program enables CDFIs to execute large-scale projects, including the development of commercial real estate, housing units, charter schools, daycare or healthcare centers, and rural infrastructure projects, among other assets. As of August 31, 2022, more than $1.4 billion in bond proceeds has been disbursed in 32 states and the District of Columbia.