Our History
2000
Four Bands Established
Four Bands Community Fund incorporated. Established first office at Tribal Planning Office. Launched CREATE (Cheyenne River Entrepreneurial Assistance Training and Education) class.
2001
First Employee Hired
Hired first full-time employee. Received first operating support from USDA and FNDI. Also received funding from the CDFI Fund’s Small and Emerging CDFI Assistance (SECA) program prior to the Native American CDFI Assistance (NACA) program being formed.
2002
Began Deploying Loan Capital
Approved first micro-loan and received certification from the CDFI Fund.
2003
Loan Portfolio Doubled Year Over Year
Hired additional staff. Opened Made on the Rez Mercantile. Loan portfolio reaches $36,693.
2004
Began Serving Youth
Expanded scope of work to include youth programs in order to invest in the future of the Reservation.
2005
Launched Matched Savings Program
Established the Individual Development Account (IDA) Program to encourage saving and a pattern of asset building. This program ran for over a decade.
2006
Partnered to Promote Tourism
Launched NativeDiscovery.org to promote untapped culturally-based tourism economy on the Cheyenne River, Rosebud, and Pine Ridge Reservations, marking an unprecedented partnership with state tourism department. Established Four Bands as a Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) site.
2007
Launched Credit Builder Program
Created the credit builder loan product to help build credit histories. Hosted 1st Annual Entrepreneurship Fair. Started youth internship program.
2008
Reached $1M in Lending
Launched the Making Waves Program on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation along with the Make Money Matter and Shop Cheyenne River campaigns. Reached the $1 million mark in lending. Started Cheyenne River Chamber of Commerce.
2009
Established Partnership with Reservation Schools
Making Waves expanded to serve all five schools located on the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation.
2010
10 Year Anniversary
Four Bands celebrated 10 years of serving the Cheyenne River Indian Reservation. Reached fundraising goal of $2,000,010 by 2010. Began fiscally sponsoring the South Dakota Indian Business Alliance (SDIBA), which would last for 7 years.
2011
Formalized Impact Tracking
Increased revenue by 60%. Adopted impact measurement procedure to operationalize our mission statement and increase our target market accountability. Organized the Native CDFI Network and fiscally sponsored the fledgling entity for 4 years.
2012
Expanded Offices
Continued impact measurement by participating in Scale Academy of the Aspen Institute and Microtest. Expanded offices and added the training center. Started Green Cheyenne River initiative, which led to equity bundle creation.
2013
Began Serving All South Dakota
Expanded target market to include entire state of South Dakota. Named as Bush Prize winner, receiving first investment into our general operating support. 1st Annual ART in the Park event. Participated in mobilization of South Dakota Native Homeownership Coalition.
2014
Loan Portfolio Doubled
Portfolio doubled as we began serving the whole state. Delivered Working with Traditions (workforce development curriculum) trainings across the state.
2015
Established Culture of Repayment
Established culture of repayment. Completed CREATE evaluation. Began advocating for USDA 502 relending pilot to enter homeownership space.
2016
Expanded Youth Programming
Hired additional staff to focus on youth programming. Last year of Tribal Ventures funding for asset development. Honored by National Center for American Indian Enterprise Development (NCAIED) with Small Business Empowerment Award.
2017
Launched Home Renovation Loan
Launched home renovation product. Began fundraising for incubator and hired architect to draft plans. Hosted One Hope youth conference. Received 3-year grant from ANA to integrate financial empowerment. Began delivering construction internship program in partnership with South Dakota Native Homeownership Coalition.
2018
Deployed First Mortgage Loan
Began construction on incubator facility. Implemented new coaching model for credit builder program. Invested in youth businesses. Formalized and launched ag lending product on Cheyenne River. Chosen as one of two Native CDFIs to participate in nationwide USDA 502 mortgage relending pilot. Deployed first mortgage loan.
2019
Completed New Incubator Facility
Completed incubator construction with space for six new businesses and Four Bands’ new headquarters. Hired staff to elevate new mortgage product and completed first full year of mortgage lending with 12 home loans deployed totaling over $855K.
2020
Pivoted Operations for COVID-19 Response
COVID-19 pandemic hits. Developed response plan and pivoted operations to connect consumers, homeowners, and small businesses to nearly $500K in various resources. Dedicated $200K of earned revenue to loan modifications. Helped mobilize Mountain | Plains Regional Native CDFI Coalition.
2021
First Incubator Graduate
Partnered with Pashko to launch Oyate Studio, a workforce development program for Native artisans. Kelsie Kay’s Coffee Depot became first incubator graduate. Hired three new staff as two long-time staff retired after 20-plus years.
2022
Awarded $45M with Mountain | Plains Coalition
Mountain | Plains Coalition received $45M Build Back Better Award from Economic Development Administration, largest single investment into Native CDFI industry at the time. Became partner in Good Relatives Collaborative with Bush Foundation. Purchased 4.6 acres adjacent to headquarters for future development.
2023
Record Lending Activity – $10M Deployed
Reached record annual lending activity with nearly $10M deployed. Hired staff to manage regional revolving loan fund, part of $45M Build Back Better award. Launched Peer2Peer loan product. Conducted reservation-wide thriving wage study.
2024
Closed 100th Home Mortgage
Closed 100th home mortgage. Received Yield Giving award. Portfolio size reached over $25M. Sunsetted VITA program after 18 years.
2025
Silver Anniversary!
Celebrated 25 years of creating economic opportunity!