Infused With Fresh Cash, Black-Owned Banks Need More to Survive

Bloomberg
Wednesday, November 3, 2021

In the wake of George Floyd's murder, JPMorgan Chase & Co., Citigroup Inc., Wells Fargo & Co. and other large U.S. lenders began investing hundreds of millions of dollars in Black-owned banks -- an attempt to help meet the needs of underserved borrowers as systemic racism became part of the national conversation. More than a year later, executives at the Black-owned banks say the cash infusions have allowed them to increase lending and expand their staffs, giving support to the African-American community amid pandemic-era uncertainty. Still, while the funding has been useful, the lenders say they need additional investment to shrink racial inequality in financial services and ensure their longterm survival. The number of Black-owned banks has been cut in half over the past 20 years. CDBA members Industrial Bank and Optus Bank are mentioned.