De la comunidad, En la comunidad, Para la comunidad.
We’re on a mission to prove that Community Banking is a powerful engine for social equity.
Our Purpose
To help our neighbors prosper by providing banking services, financial education, and community building initiatives and partnerships that allow them to dream and achieve vibrant futures.
Our History
Ponce Bank was born in The Bronx in 1960 at a time when most banks had abandoned the community. The Bronx was labeled a "community in decline." But our founders, migrants from Puerto Rico, saw nothing but the potential of a proud neighborhood anchored by a strong immigrant work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit. They saw that all it needed was financial investment and vowed to provide it.
Today, our designation as a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) certifies our commitment as an investor in the future of our communities. Ponce Bank is where neighbors envision the future, build their dreams, and celebrate all they’ve done.
Founded by migrants from Puerto Rico back in 1960, today we are a certified Minority Depository Institution!
Founded by migrants from Puerto Rico back in 1960, today we are a certified Minority Depository Institution!
Founded by migrants from Puerto Rico back in 1960, today we are a certified Minority Depository Institution!
Bank with a CDFI.
Ponce Bank earned the Community development financial institution (CDFI) distinction by investing over 75% of our loans in the communities we serve. Our CDFI designation from the US Department of the Treasury certifies our role as an investor in the future of underbanked communities.
#1 in Housing Focus
Ponce Bank is ranked among the top CDFIs
#2 in Loans in LMI Communities
#5 in Total Loans
CDFIs Invest Money in Your Community
CDFIs use the deposits from customers to make loans that support local businesses and finance the dream of home ownership within the community. By lending your dollars here in the com-munity, we help your neighbors grow and thrive. So when customers bank with Ponce Bank, they’re putting money right back into your own neighborhood.
CDFIs Are Engines for Social Justice
CDFIs were founded as part of the Community Reinvestment Act of 1977. We combat the systematic disenfranchisement of people based on race, origin, or where they live, by addressing the inequalities in banking and economic development.
CDFIs Are Accountable
CDFIs are mandated and monitored to dedicate at least 60% of their lending to low- and low-to-moderate income (LMI) communities in order to achieve this certification. In fact, in 2023 alone, 75% of the dollars Ponce Bank loaned were in these designated communities, easily surpassing the 60% minimum.
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We invest in local folks. We invest in your neighborhoods.
75%
of loans
We invest over 75% of our loans in low to moderate income neighborhoods.
60+
Years of Service
We have served the New York City Metro Area for more than 60 years.
#1
Nationwide
National Community Investment Fund rated us #1 for lending in low to moderate income communities among Community Development Financial Institutions.1
Proud to Be Designated a Minority Depository Institution (MDI)
We’re proud to be one of fewer than 40 banks in the US to be certified both CDFI and MDI.
A majority of our board of directors are minorities, and we serve predominantly minority communities. We are committed to bringing concierge-level banking service to people that most banks ignore.
A majority of our Ponce Bankers speak Spanish and throughout our Ponce network we speak over a dozen other languages too!
Don’t let your money fund fossil fuel developments
At Ponce Bank we live in your neighborhood and we’ve seen the outsized impact that climate change and poor environmental stewardship has on our communities. From the deadly flooding of Hurricane Ida to the punishing heat of our hottest summer on record, our neighbors suffer more than most. We won’t invest your money in fossil fuel extraction and are committed to a variety of environmental programs to help reduce the impact of climate change on our neighbors and friends.
Ponce De Leon Foundation
The Ponce De Leon Foundation strengthens the communities served by Ponce Bank by providing grants that support charitable causes in our neighborhoods.
Learn More
1National Community Investment Fund Ratings Report June 2022.