Top 10 US Microfinance Institutions

Accion Opportunity Fund is the largest small business microfinance organization in the US, deploying over $1 billion to 75,000+ underserved entrepreneurs. Loans range from $5,000 to $250,000, targeting Black, Latino, women, and immigrant owners facing systemic credit barriers. While its total volume trails #1 Grameen America's $3 billion, AOF's $100 million Racial Equity Fund, launched with JPMorgan Chase and Prudential in 2025, is the largest dedicated microfinance equity fund for majority-minority communities.

Accion Opportunity Fund

Kiva is the world's leading peer-to-peer microlending platform, with $1.8 billion disbursed to 4 million borrowers across 77 countries, including a strong US program. Its zero-interest model relies on crowdfunded loans, maintaining a repayment rate above 96%. Unlike #2 Accion Opportunity Fund's interest-bearing loans, Kiva's model eliminates cost barriers for borrowers. In 2025, Kiva Capital launched a $50 million fund channeling institutional capital into US CDFIs, amplifying microfinance lending at scale.

Kiva

LISC has deployed $26 billion since 1980, making it one of the largest and oldest CDFIs in America, supporting affordable housing and small businesses across 2,400+ cities. Its CDFI status leverages federal funding with private capital, multiplying impact. While its total investment dwarfs #1 Grameen America's $3 billion, LISC's Small Business Relief program in 2025 distributed $150 million in emergency loans to 15,000 businesses—a 10% increase over the prior year's disbursement.

LISC (Local Initiatives Support Corporation)

LiftFund is the largest microfinance organization in the US South and Southwest, having made 96,000+ loans totaling $1.5+ billion to small businesses across Texas, Louisiana, Georgia, and 13 other states since 1994. It specializes in micro-loans from $500 to $1 million for businesses that traditional banks reject, focusing on Latino entrepreneurs, veterans, and rural communities. In 2025-2026, LiftFund partnered with H-E-B, Toyota, and USAA to launch dedicated small business support funds for minority-owned suppliers.

LiftFund

Community Reinvestment Fund USA (CRF) has deployed $1.5+ billion since 1988, pioneering the secondary market for CDFI loans by purchasing and securitizing community development loans from smaller lenders, freeing up capital for additional lending. CRF's Loan Marketplace platform connects small businesses with 100+ CDFI lenders in a single application process. In 2025, CRF administered $300 million in State Small Business Credit Initiative (SSBCI) funds on behalf of seven state governments.

Community Reinvestment Fund USA

Opportunity Finance Network (OFN) is the leading national network of CDFIs, representing 350+ member organizations that collectively manage $80+ billion in assets and serve 17 million+ low-income Americans annually. OFN advocates for federal CDFI Fund appropriations, coordinates disaster relief lending across its network, and publishes the definitive annual CDFI industry report. In 2025, OFN members collectively deployed a record $45 billion in new credit — triple the 2020 figure — fueled by CDFI Fund grants and New Markets Tax Credit allocations.

Opportunity Finance Network

Accion USA was the pioneering US microfinance organization that first adapted the Latin American microfinance model for domestic deployment in 1991, providing small loans to US entrepreneurs excluded from the banking system. After merging with Opportunity Fund to form Accion Opportunity Fund in 2020, its legacy defines the US microfinance sector. Accion USA originated over $500 million in microloans to 65,000+ small businesses, achieving default rates below 7% by investing heavily in client coaching alongside capital.

Accion USA (Historical)

Justine PETERSEN is a St. Louis-based CDFI renowned for its Individual Development Account (IDA) matched-savings programs and microloans that have helped 85,000+ low-income families build assets, buy homes, and start businesses since 1997. It is the only organization in America to offer IDAs, homeownership counseling, microbusiness loans, and credit building programs under one roof. In 2025-2026, Justine PETERSEN's IDA programs were replicated in 12 states through federal Assets for Independence Act grants.

Justine PETERSEN

ImpactAssets is a nonprofit financial services firm managing $3+ billion in donor-advised fund assets, channeling philanthropic capital into microfinance institutions, sustainable agriculture, and social enterprises globally and domestically. Its Giving Fund allows donors to invest in an impact-first portfolio and recommend grants to CDFIs and microfinance organizations. In 2025-2026, ImpactAssets launched the Inclusive Economy Loan Portfolio — a $200 million vehicle investing in US CDFIs serving rural and tribal communities that lack access to mainstream capital.

ImpactAssets