Startups Looking to Solve Racial Inequality in Banking

According to data from the FDIC as recently as 2017 about 17 percent of Black households and 14 percent of Hispanic families lack basic financial services, compared with 3 percent of white households; there is a growing group of fintechs designed to serve people in lower income communities as they understand the traditional was of serving people does not work for everyone; companies like MoCaFi, Aura and Oportun have expanded the reach of finance and are helping to deliver on the promise of fintech, which is lowering the barrier to entry; the missions of these companies is to help people in communities of color to learn more about various financial products and to allow them to gain access to products that are affordable; right now someone with no credit or bad credit would find extremely high rates, the products offered by these fintechs come with moderately high rates that can be reduced over time as the borrower pays back a loan; the broader fintech community is not inclusive enough, but some firms are trying to change that and have found success which will hopefully lead to more access over time. New York Times.

  • Todd Anderson

    Todd is the host of PitchIt: the fintech startups podcast, a weekly interview show featuring emerging fintech founders and leading venture capitalists. He is responsible for leading the content team which covers fintech through daily & weekly email newsletters, editorial, virtual events, and in-person conferences. He has been covering fintech, banking, and venture capital for more than 15 years, including speaking regularly at industry events.