Our path to advance racial equity

With numerous reminders that systemic racism has devastating consequences for individuals, families, and communities.

The COVID-19 pandemic is ripping apart black communities across the country, killing blacks twice as fast as whites, while leaving a trail of job losses and the closure of black-owned businesses throughout the country. his step.

This, along with the assassinations of George Floyd and so many others, has sparked a flood of business support for Black Americans in recent months, and we’ve seen numerous examples of companies stepping forward to make concrete changes to the way they work. do business in an effort to promote racial equity around the world.

As America’s largest bank, it’s about time JPMorgan Chase took its part in creating economic opportunity and inclusiveness for historically underserved communities.

Systemic racism is a tragic part of American history. It is a congenital defect in our society that has resulted in racial gaps in virtually every area of ​​American life, including wealth, home ownership, educational outcomes, health care, incarceration rates, and hope for life. lifetime.

The real lives that matter are affected by these gaps, and it is our responsibility to do something about them, given the role of banks in the financial health of the communities we serve.

How JPMorgan Chase fights the racial wealth gap

In recent months, we’ve reviewed our business practices, our products, and the role we play in communities across the country to understand the changes we must make to address the top drivers of the racial wealth gap.

We’ve especially focused on developing ways to expand affordable housing and loans, increase credit and capital for black-owned small businesses, and improve access to tools that help blacks save money and get on the road to a sustained financial health.

This work has led us to commit to $ 30 billion over the next five years to provide economic opportunity to underserved communities, with special attention to the black and Latino population. These commitments include loans, equity, and direct financing to promote home ownership and affordable housing.

We have set a goal of making an additional 40,000 home purchase loans to Black and Latino households. To do this, we have allocated 8,000 million dollars to mortgages. We also want underserved communities to be able to take advantage of historically low interest rates, and we’ve earmarked $ 4 billion to help Black and Latino households refinance their home loans.

Opening Pathways to Financial Health

Through our own research, we know that black households tend to have less savings and a higher debt burden than other groups. Historically, black Americans have been forced to deal with less access to credit, and they often have to pay higher financing rates.

Additionally, too many black Americans are completely unbanked, making them more likely to turn to predatory alternative financial services such as check cashing and payday lenders.

To combat this problem, we aim to help one million people open low-cost checking and savings accounts. To do this, we must establish stronger connections with underserved communities, which is why we have committed to hiring 150 new community managers.

We also plan to open new Community Center branches in the areas that need it most and increase our marketing reach to our Black and Latino populations to publicize these efforts.

Support African American Entrepreneurship

If we are to make significant progress in closing the racial wealth gap, entrepreneurship must be a key part of the equation. We are committed to helping job creators in Black and Latino communities access the credit they need to launch, grow and expand their businesses.

As part of this effort, we have committed to providing $ 2 billion in loans and providing another $ 750 million to Black and Latino businesses that can provide products and services to JPMorgan Chase.

We are also expanding our Entrepreneurs of Color Fund to support more Black and Latino small business owners across the country.

As we move forward in these efforts, we know we must be held accountable if we want them to have the desired impact. We will continually evaluate the performance of these commitments and adjust them as necessary. Ultimately, we know that no single company can close the racial wealth gap, but it is our responsibility to try, and work with other companies and policy makers along the way.

We own our part in this, and we are just getting started.

Visit JPMorganChase.com/Pathforward to learn more about our efforts to promote racial equity, including affordable housing, minority-owned businesses, financial health, workforce diversity, and much more.

* Brian Lamb is the Global Director of Diversity and Inclusion at JPMorgan Chase

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