City First Bank, N.A.
District of Columbia, United States
April 2017
Deposit bank - Developed Markets
Service with Minor Environmental Footprint
United States
As DC’s first community development financial institution bank (CDFI), City First’s mission begins and ends with the community. Their loans have made possible the creation of hundreds of new small businesses, thousands of jobs, thousands of affordable housing units, and dozens of new charter schools and other nonprofits that provide important services to their community. City First works creatively with socially responsible investors, public agencies, and financial intermediaries to provide a triple bottom line impact—helping depositors earn a superior return while their deposits go to work in neighborhoods in and around the Washington, DC region. Projects of note include: Bread for the City, Capital Area Food Bank, Central Union Mission, Mary’s Center, N Street Village, THEARC, Atlas Theater, Tivoli Theater, Thurgood Marshall Academy, EL Haynes, DC Prep, Achievement Prep, Bright Beginnings, Ben’s Chili Bowl and small businesses in Union Kitchen, as well as critical permanent affordable housing buildings in gentrifying neighborhoods.
Overall B Impact Score
Governance 16.3
Governance evaluates a company's overall mission, engagement around its social/environmental impact, ethics, and transparency. This section also evaluates the ability of a company to protect their mission and formally consider stakeholders in decision making through their corporate structure (e.g. benefit corporation) or corporate governing documents.
What is this? A company with an Impact Business Model is intentionally designed to create a specific positive outcome for one of its stakeholders - such as workers, community, environment, or customers.
Governance 16.3
The Governance Impact Area evaluates a company's overall mission, engagement around its social and environmental impact, ethics, and transparency. This section also evaluates the ability of a company to protect their mission and formally consider stakeholders in decision making through their corporate structure (e.g. benefit corporation) or corporate governing documents.
What is this? A company with an Impact Business Model is intentionally designed to create a specific positive outcome for one of its stakeholders - such as workers, community, environment, or customers.
Workers 22.5
The Workers Impact Area evaluates a company's contributions to its employees' financial security, health and safety, wellness, career development, as well as overall engagement and satisfaction. In addition, this section recognizes business models designed to benefit workers, such as companies that are at least 40% owned by non-executive employees and those that have workforce development programs to support individuals with barriers to employment.
Community 45.8
The Community Impact Area evaluates a company's engagement with and impact on the communities in which it operates, hires from, and sources from. Topics include diversity, equity, and inclusion; economic impact; civic engagement; charitable giving; and supply chain management. In addition, this section recognizes business models that are designed to address specific community-oriented problems, such as poverty alleviation through fair trade sourcing or distribution via microenterprises, producer cooperative models, locally focused economic development, and formal charitable giving commitments.
What is this? A company with an Impact Business Model is intentionally designed to create a specific positive outcome for one of its stakeholders - such as workers, community, environment, or customers.
Environment 5.8
The Environment Impact Area evaluates a company's overall environmental management practices as well as its impact on the air, climate, water, land, and biodiversity. This includes the direct impact of a company's operations and, when applicable, its supply chain and distribution channels. This section also recognizes companies with environmentally innovative production processes and those that sell products or services that have a positive environmental impact. Some examples might include products and services that create renewable energy, reduce consumption or waste, conserve land or wildlife, provide less toxic alternatives to the market, or educate people about environmental problems.
What is this? A company with an Impact Business Model is intentionally designed to create a specific positive outcome for one of its stakeholders - such as workers, community, environment, or customers.
Customers 56.4
The Customers Impact Area evaluates a company's stewardship of its customers through the quality of its products and services, ethical marketing, data privacy and security, and feedback channels. In addition, this section recognizes products or services that are designed to address a particular social problem for or through its customers, such as health or educational products, arts and media products, serving underserved customers or clients, and services that improve the social impact of other businesses or organizations.
What is this? A company with an Impact Business Model is intentionally designed to create a specific positive outcome for one of its stakeholders - such as workers, community, environment, or customers.
Previous Overall B Impact Scores
Best for the World
Every year, B Lab recognizes the B Corps that have achieved the highest verified scores in the five impact areas evaluated on the B Impact Assessment.