September 15, 2026, Next City, A Critical Few Weeks Ahead for Community Development Finance

The proposed new CRA rules lift the thresholds for all three levels. Small banks would top out at $1 billion in assets; intermediate banks would be those from $1 billion to $10 billion in assets; and large banks above $10 billion in assets. By shifting which banks fall into each category, roughly 814 banks would no longer be evaluated for community development activity, and another 417 banks would face reduced community development scrutiny after dropping down from the large level to the intermediate level, according to the National Community Reinvestment Coalition.