Executive Summary​

The nation’s 153 Minority Depository Institutions (MDIs) are mission-driven banks that empower people and communities to save, build, and invest. MDIs provide essential financial services to those that mainstream financial institutions have traditionally not served, growing the economy from the ground up and ensuring the resiliency of Main Streets across the country.

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Released annually by the National Bankers Association (NBA), the State of MDI report covers developments in the size, scale, and impact of the MDI sector. In this year’s report, we provide an overview of the sector, discuss trends in financial performance, explore community development impacts, analyze lending activity, and summarize qualitative insights from bank leaders.

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The 2025 State of MDI report key findings include the following:

• As a sector, 153 MDIs collectively hold $381 billion in assets, with over 1,500 branches across 42 states and territories. Almost 26 million people live in zip codes with an MDI present, representing 8% of the total population. Most MDIs are modestly sized, with a median of $475 million in assets and 4 bank branches.  

• MDI financial performance is broadly on par with other community banks. Like all U.S. banks, MDIs are contending with a high interest rate environment, increasing consumer credit delinquencies, and generalized economic uncertainty.

• Consistent with their mission, MDIs locate in and serve communities with higher rates of economic hardship and minority residents. Still, we continue to find evidence that communities with an MDI present have better credit health than similar communities without MDIs, including lower inquiries for high-cost lending products such as payday or pawnshop loans. 

• The 15 banks in our lending analysis originated more than $2.6 billion in 2024, investing in every state and Washington, D.C. Almost two-thirds of originations were for small dollar consumer loans. By dollar amount, residential real estate, commercial real estate, and land development together accounted for 71% of total lending. As in past years, significant shares of MDI lending went to communities with elevated economic hardship and minority populations.

• MDIs are watching to see how political developments affect their operating environment. The 2025 Survey of MDI Leaders showed that bank executives started the year bullish on both the national and local economy. Almost 80% of banks aimed to move into the next asset size band, with a focus on principled and sustainable growth. Yet by summer, overall economic confidence had cooled, as the macroeconomic picture appeared uncertain.