Forum Members Working to Close the Racial Wealth Gap
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Forum Members Working to Close the Racial Wealth Gap Bank of America in 2020 announced a $1 billion commitment to advance racial equality and economic opportunity, an effort recently expanded to $1.25 billion over five years. The initiative includes actions to address racial justice and advocacy for communities of color and is focused on creating opportunity in areas with persistent, systemic barriers including health and healthcare, jobs/reskilling, small business and affordable housing. To date, the company has made more than $350 million in various investments, including equity investments in 40 minority focused funds, totaling more than $150 million, and investments in 14 minority depository institutions and community development financial institutions to providebanking services to those that do not qualify through traditional lenders. BNY Mellon recently made a $15 million commitment – $5 million to the Community College of Allegheny County and $10 million to the City University of New York – to support workforce training programs in traditionally underrepresented minority groups and communities hardest hit by the recent economic downturn. Additionally, BNY Mellon launched its Equality Campaign Matched Giving program matching at 200 percent employee donations to organizations focused on social justice reform and racial equality. BNY Mellon made an initial pledge of $1.5 million to key organizations like My Brother’s Keeper, NAACP Legal Defense and Education Fund, Southern Poverty Law Center, National Network for Safe Communities and Vera Institute of Justice. In September 2020, Citi announced more than $1 billion in strategic initiatives to help close the racial wealth gap and increase economic mobility. These initiatives include resources for supporting homeownership and affordable housing for people of color; procurement opportunities for Black-owned business suppliers; investing capital for Black entrepreneurs; supporting MDIs; and grants to community organizations addressing racial equality. Further, in September 2020 Citi expanded its Pathways to Progress program with an additional $100 million investment. This program has served approximately 100,000 Black and Latinx youth over the past three years, and expanded efforts will focus on employment and entrepreneurship programs. Goldman Sachs this year announced an investment initiative, One Million Black Women, of more than $10 billion to advance racial equity and economic opportunity by investing in Black women to address the dual disproportionate gender and racial biases that Black women have faced for generations, which have only been exacerbated by the pandemic. Since the start of the pandemic, Goldman Sachs has deployed over $690 million for emergency loans through CDFIs and other mission-driven lenders; nearly half went to small businesses in minority communities. The firm also created the $10 million Goldman Sachs Fund for Racial Equity, which supports organizations addressing racial injustice, structural inequity and economic disparity. The Financial Services Forum is an economic policy and Learn more about the Financial Services Forum and how our advocacy organization whose members are the chief members’ more than 755,000 employees serve our economy executive officers of the eight largest and most diversified and our communities at www.fsforum.com, and follow us on financial institutions headquartered in the United States. Twitter: @fsforum. PAGE 2 JPMorgan Chase in 2020 announced a $30 billion commitment over five years to advance racial equity for Black and Latinx communities. Looking at the levers the firm could pull to help close the racial wealth gap, support their employees around the world and do their part to dismantle systemic racism, the firm is taking a holistic approach to make targeted business and philanthropic investments that benefit more underserved and underbanked communities. Using the full resources of the firm, JPMC is investing in affordable housing, small business expansion, financial health and neighborhood development using flexible, low-cost loans and grants to help Black and Latinx families build generational wealth, sustainably. For example, through their Entrepreneurs of Color Fund, JPMC has provided over 1,200 loans and deployed more than $32 million in capital to Black, Latinx and other underserved entrepreneurs since 2015. In 2020, Morgan Stanley and the National Community Reinvestment Coalition (NCRC) announced a $15 billion plan to increase lending and investments in lower-income communities. Five million dollars in grant capital is passing through NCRC’s CDFI with a focus on advancing racial equity. Morgan Stanley also announced $10 million in grants to support the National Urban League (NUL). The funds support NUL’s financial literacy, homeowners counseling and workforce development programs with an emphasis on technology programs that help expand broadband, and a four-year internship program that allows rising leaders to work with executive management. Additionally, Morgan Stanley has committed $10 million in grants to support MDIs. State Street in 2020 announced a five-year, $5 million commitment to the New Commonwealth Racial Equity and Social Justice Fund. This fund supports Black- and brown-led organizations that are working on economic empowerment, youth civic engagement, healthcare equity, and criminal justice reform Additionally, the firm is increasing its spend with diverse suppliers over the next three years to strengthen Black- and Latinx- owned businesses. State Street is a key partner in Small Business Strong, a partnership created to help women and minority-owned small businesses navigate the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic by providing pro-bono resources to provide advice on subjects such as access to capital, business growth, digital marketing and customer engagement plans -- all at no cost to the small business owner. Wells Fargo is donating approximately $400 million to small business nonprofits through its Open for Business Fund, with a special focus on helping minority-owned businesses obtain capital and technical support. The firm is also investing up to $50 million in African American MDIs to help support and generate economic opportunities in African American communities. As part of its $175 million response to COVID-19, the Wells Fargo Foundation has provided more than 1,200 grants in support of nonprofits to help keep people housed. Additionally, Wells Fargo has helped small business owners sustain 195,000 jobs so far through its Diverse Community Capital program, a five-year, $175 million effort to empower diverse entrepreneurs by delivering assistance through 90+ CDFIs. BANK OF AMERICA • BNY MELLON • CITIGROUP • GOLDMAN SACHS • JPMORGAN CHASE & CO • MORGAN STANLEY • STATE STREET • WELLS FARGO.