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South Africa’s first Black-owned bank has hit unicorn status, POCIT reports. Tyme Group, founded in 2019, is majority-owned by billionaire Patrice Motsepe, notes Bloomberg. The platform was designed to make digital banking more affordable and accessible, and it has been an overwhelming success with online and physical banks throughout South Africa and the Philippines. According to TechCrunch, it has attracted 10 million users since its inception and reached an additional 5 million users through its Philippine brand, GoTyme. GoTyme allows users to create an account via its bank app. Customers can then receive an ATM debit card instantly and retrieve it at a kiosk. Tyme Group says it has allocated $600 million in financing to support small businesses and has raised $400 million in customer deposits. Now it is seeking to extend its reach in new markets, which include Vietnam and Indonesia by 2025. This will be made possible in light of a $250 million round led by digital bank Nu...
Hip-Hop’s Run The Jewels, comprised of Killer Mike and El-P, are making entrepreneurial moves as a duo with their new craft beer. Run The Jewels’ three new beer collaborations is a partnership with Black-owned breweries including Proximity Brewing, Spaceway Brewing and Green Bench Brewing Co., to expand their brand. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Run The Jewels (@runthejewels) The group is currently collaborating with over 20 breweries from all over the world to create their quality beer. Their first ale “Stay Gold” started their track record off at a solid ranking as it was voted 2017’s “IPA of the Year” by Draft Magazine. According to Pitchfork, each beer — “Never Look Back,” “All Due Respect” and “Blockbuster Night Pt.1” — are named after Run The Jewels’ songs. Plus, partial proceeds from “Never Look Back” will go to Beer Kulture — a nonprofit working to increase diversity, equity and inclusion in the craft beer industry. In addition, partial proceeds from “All Due...
Neobank First Boulevard is not only for the culture, but it’s by the culture. Not to be confused with a traditional bank, First Boulevard is a fully inclusive financial services company that not only believes that banking should be inclusive, but has a plan in place to help Black America build generational wealth, control spending, and receive paychecks up to two days early. “Through representation, our goal is to show others that the solutions we need can be effectively developed within our own communities,” said First Boulevard Founder and CEO, Donald Hawkins in an exclusive interview with AfroTech. “Our company looks like the market we serve and as a result, we have an unfair advantage when it comes to building products that Black America needs. Our diversity is our intellectual property and our members are the driving force behind what we do.” As an institution dedicated to the betterment of the community, it was only right that the neobank’s beta launch took place during...
The Wades are getting to the bag! In their latest business venture, Gabrielle Union and Dwyane Wade have announced the launch of their children’s skincare brand, Proudly. According to ESSENCE, the brand is a first-of-its-kind sustainable baby care brand created with melanin babies in mind! “We’re so excited to officially announce our new baby company, Proudly. As we continue to work on new endeavors together, our goal is to always center our work around being the change we want to see while championing diversity, equity, and inclusion,” said the couple in a joint statement. “With Proudly, we’re proud to have a range of products that caters to the unique skincare needs of children of color that are so often overlooked in the mass market.” Proudly comes on the heels of the children’s book, “Shady Baby” which was inspired by their daughter Kaavia. Keeping the babies in mind Proudly is on a mission to cater to the needs of children with rich skin tones rather than the one-size-fits-all...
Meet the two forces on a mission to build a village committed to financial well-being. According to Business Wire, The Village Financial Cooperative will be launched thanks to two leading organizations in the credit union sector. “We remain committed to the launch of the Village Financial Cooperative, and will be working in close coordination with both the Minnesota Credit Union Network and the African-American Credit Union Coalition,” said Debra Hurston, Executive Director at the Association for Black Economic Power (ABEP) — who was appointed in December 2020 — in a news release. ABEP is a nonprofit that was birthed right from North Minneapolis community members who believe in the critical need for institutional economic power to address inequities experienced by Blacks in Minnesota. “In addition to the new alliances we are forging within the credit union sector, our objective is to continue to nurture a broad base of support for the Village Financial Cooperative, including...
Greenwood takes it up a notch! The digital banking platform made specifically with Black and Latino people and business owners in mind has announced that it has decided to partner with Mastercard as its network of choice for the bank’s first debit card. According to PR Newswire, the matte black debit Mastercard will give its cardholders a digital-centric experience along with an extensive list of security and concierge benefits. The card will also include innovative giveback programs with a focus on supporting both Black and Latino causes and businesses. Together the companies will deliver an Enhanced Mastercard® debit program which will provide all members financial protections and management services that include credit monitoring and transaction alerts as well as ID Theft Protection™, emergency card replacement, Mastercard Airport Concierge™, and access to once-in-a-lifetime exclusive Priceless offers and experiences. “As Greenwood works toward bringing practical products to...
The global neobanking market is expected to reach an estimated $723 billion by 2028, according to Grand View Research. As more people handle their finances online, the neobanking industry has been getting a lot of love, but what are neobanks anyway? Neobanks are digital-only financial institutions that operate similarly to traditional banks, but without physical branches, The Balance explains. You typically access neobanks through mobile applications and online platforms. While neobanking can be convenient, have lower costs and are more easily accessible, they don’t have the same accreditation as traditional banks and are regulated much less. Above all, neobanking requires access to technology and internet, a luxury that not everyone has. Another thing to think about with neobanking is that even with access to technology and internet, consumers have to be comfortable and trust tech in order to invest in using online-only banking systems. Some neobanks like N26, Atom Bank and Monzo...
Greenwood has made more strides toward becoming the biggest digital banking platform for Black and Latinx individuals and business owners. On March 25, the platform announced it has closed a $40 million Series A funding round. The round included participation from six of the seven largest banks in the U.S. along with Bank of America, PNC, Mastercard, Truist, Wells Fargo, and Visa, reports PR Newswire. The group is joined by Popular, the largest Hispanic-owned bank in the U.S.; venture capital firms TTV Capital, the SoftBank Group Corp’s SB Opportunity Fund, Lightspeed Venture Partners, and FIS, a leading provider of technology solutions for banks, capital markets firms, and merchants globally. Other groups include sports and entertainment names like Quality Ventures, the private equity arm of the sports media corporation, Quality Control, and All-Pro NFL running back Alvin Kamara. View this post on Instagram A post shared by Greenwood (@bankgreenwood) “The net worth of a typical...
First Boulevard Bank, a digital bank aimed toward Black America, has announced that it’s raised $5 million in its initial seed funding round. According to TechCrunch, the digital bank got its seed funding from a diverse group of investors that includes actress Gabrielle Union, Union Square Ventures’ John Buttrick, and AutoZone CFO Jamere Jackson. Barclays and Anthemis rounded out the funding. First Boulevard Bank — formerly known as Tenth — was co-founded by Donald Hawkins and Asya Bradley, who said that they were inspired to do so in the wake of the George Floyd murder, according to TechCrunch. Hawkins also said that he was inspired to found First Boulevard Bank when he realized that the collective spending power of Black America was in the trillions, but that there were only 19 Black-owned banks in the United States with $5 billion in assets. “And their technology was really behind the times,” Hawkins said, according to TechCrunch. “We also took a hard look at some of the existing...
Successful entrepreneur and go-getter Ryan Glover has always been excited about the entertainment industry despite his inability to rap, sing, or dance. For him, it has always been from a business perspective. Using his passion for entertainment, specifically music from all over the country, Glover began to build his resume right in Washington, D.C. at Howard University. “I saw the energy being created all over and thought it would be an amazing idea to bring that energy to Washington D.C. onto Howard’s campus,” he tells Black Tech Green Money host Will Lucas. For Glover, Howard was more than just a learning experience. It was a place where he not only learned from other cultures and people from all over the world but began to form the very relationships that he says have helped him to remain successful across multiple industries. “It was actually these very relationships that helped me to build my first business,” he said. “They were garnered right on Howard’s campus.” Glover is a...
Actor and community activist Jesse Williams has become the latest investor to join Greenwood’s financial empowerment efforts. Greenwood — the new digital banking platform for Black and Latinx entrepreneurs and small businesses — recently launched to help repair the hole in Atlanta’s finance market with the help of rapper Killer Mike, former Atlanta Mayor Andrew Young, and Bounce TV founder Ryan Glover. Williams has now signed on to help the digital bank carry out its mission to strengthen the economy for communities of color. “I’m excited to join the Greenwood team and work to advance economic prosperity for people of color,” he said in a statement . “The time has come for Black and Latinx communities in America to strengthen our economic condition and influence. By increasing access to essential banking services and financial education, Greenwood is a key part of that movement.” View this post on Instagram A post shared by Greenwood (@bankgreenwood) Williams is most known for...
Rapper Killer Mike — also known as Michael Render — has a plan to fill the gaping hole in the finance market in Atlanta for Black and Latinx citizens, and he’s enlisted the help of some of the city’s most revered businessmen and politicians to do it. According to TechCrunch , Killer Mike, former Atlanta Mayor Andrew Young, and Bounce TV founder, Ryan Glover have all partnered together to launch Greenwood , a new digital bank backed by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation with aims to help Black and Latinx entrepreneurs and small businesses. https://www.instagram.com/p/CGFlBKXnnde/?utm_source=ig_web_copy_link As stated by its website , Greenwood is “a platform inspired by the early 1900’s Greenwood District, where recirculation of Black wealth occurred all day, every day, and where Black businesses thrived.” Greenwood pays homage to the famous Black Wall Street in Tulsa, Oklahoma and prioritizes several digital features designed to help promote social causes as well as...