According to the FDIC, less than 1% of all FDIC-insured banks are Black-owned.

• Although Black Americans make up 13.4% of the U.S. population, less than 1% of FDIC-insured banks are considered Black-owned.
• The number of Black-owned banks has dwindled immensely over the years.

Major investments in Black-owned banks have been announced by big banks and corporations such as Yelp, Netflix, and Microsoft.

Despite comprising 13.4% of the U.S. population, less than 1% of FDIC-insured banks are Black-owned.

Over the years, the number of Black-owned banks has significantly decreased. From 1888 to 1934, there were 134 Black-owned banks that served the community. Currently, there are only 20 Black-owned banks that meet the criteria of Minority Depository Institutions, as per the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

Michael Neal, senior research associate at the Urban Institute, stated that the decline in the number of banks and the concentration of assets in larger, more complex financial institutions are part of a broader trend in the banking community.

Despite being Black-owned, these banks lack the assets needed to compete with major players. For instance, OneUnited Bank, one of the largest Black-owned banks in the U.S., manages over $650 million in assets. In contrast, JPMorgan and Bank of America each manage assets worth well over $2 trillion dollars.

Mehrsa Baradaran, a professor of Law at the University of California Irvine, stated that the banks face the same struggles as the community because they are interconnected. The banks cannot resolve the issues unless the community has more wealth, greater access, and less discrimination in society.

Discover why Black-owned banks are crucial for financial equality and the obstacles preventing their success by watching the video.