Allocation among $5 billion in credits awarded by CDFI Fund
LITTLE ROCK, ARK. – Southern Bancorp Bank has been selected by the Community Development Financial Institutions Fund (CDFI Fund) to receive $50 million in New Markets Tax Credits (NMTC) to attract private capital investment into rural and underserved communities in the Mid-South. Southern Bancorp was also a recipient of $50 million in New Markets Tax Credits last year. This year’s allocation from the CDFI Fund totals $5 billion and went to 100 Community Development Entities (CDEs).
“We are honored to once again be awarded an allocation of New Markets Tax Credits by the CDFI Fund,” said Darrin Williams, Southern Bancorp, Inc. CEO. “Southern Bancorp has a proven track record of putting investment capital to work in places that need it most, and this program is a powerful tool through which we can put investment dollars to work supporting job growth and creation in financially underserved areas.”
The New Markets Tax Credit Program, established by Congress in December 2000, permits individual and corporate taxpayers to receive a non-refundable tax credit against federal income taxes for making equity investments in Community Development Entities. CDEs that receive the tax credit allocation authority under the program are domestic corporations or partnerships that provide loans, investments, or financial counseling in low-income urban and rural communities. The tax credit provided to the investor totals 39% of the cost of the investment and is claimed over a seven-year period. The CDEs in turn use the capital raised to make investments in low-income communities.
“We are actively looking for projects in Arkansas, Mississippi, and Shelby County, Tennessee that align with our goals for creating large scale economic opportunity and impact in underserved communities, and we encourage project developers to connect with us if they’re interested in that level of impact as well,” continued Williams.
To learn more about the New Markets Tax Credit Program and this year’s awardees, please visit www.cdfifund.gov/nmtc.
About Southern Bancorp
Founded in 1986 by some of the nation’s leading political, business, and philanthropic leaders with an initial investment of $10 million, Southern Bancorp, Inc., along with its development partners – Southern Bancorp Bank and Southern Bancorp Community Partners, has grown into a $1.9 billion asset organization with 52 locations serving 65,000 customers across two states with a unique array of financial products and services designed to help individuals at all stages of life’s financial journey – from teaching kids how to save to helping entrepreneurs and families realize the American Dream. Southern Bancorp is a certified Community Financial Development Institution, certified B-Corp, and proud member of the Global Alliance for Banking on Values. Learn more at www.BankSouthern.com and www.SouthernPartners.org.
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