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February marks a pivotal moment in Black history, and one town in Maryland is celebrating with a record number of Black-owned businesses . Princess Anne, located in Somerset County, MD, and serving as its county seat, now boasts at least 25 Black-owned businesses in its town of fewer than 4,000 residents, according to WBOC-TV. “When I first moved to this area, I was told that the last known lynching was in Princess Anne, Maryland,” said business owner Leslie Coker, reflecting on the past. “That there is now 25 Black-owned businesses in a county that has less than 4,000 people, that’s phenomenal.” Coker runs the Dynamic Divas majorette dance company, one of the Black-owned businesses contributing to Princess Anne’s record-breaking milestone. Alongside Croker, business owner Dale Parker runs the Cropa Station restaurant with his partner, while Danae Ballard launched her salon, Alluring Looks by Danae, at just 21 years old. They all take pride in being part of a community representing...
Black owned businesses in Atlanta are getting prime exposure with some help from the BeltLine and The Village Market . According to local news station , KESQ News Channel 3, the BeltLine MarketPlace is an inaugural program a part of the BeltLine’s initial small business incubator. Used as unconventional storefronts, Black business owners will have access to shipping containers and possibly food trucks to host their businesses. Set up along the Westside and Eastside trails, there will be room for up to six businesses at a time. Atlanta entrepreneur and owner of Mr. Cake Me Happy, Jerard Brown, was excited about the news. Brown sells his pastries and desserts to millions of patrons each year along the popular city trail. “The BeltLine is of course one place I’d love to open my business,” Brown said. “It’s a lot of customers out here, very busy, that’s why I’m out here today.” In a press release from the BeltLine, Inc., the mission of this installment of the small business incubator...
Softbank is betting big on Africa for the first time ever with a hefty investment in Nigerian fintech startup Opay. Bloomberg reports that the financial giant’s SoftBank Vision Fund 2 led a $400 million funding round for the fintech company, now bringing its value to $2 billion. Others that participated in the round include Sequoia Capital China, Redpoint China, Source Code Capital, Softbank Ventures Asia, DragonBall Capital and 3W Capital. Opay — a one-stop payment platform for consumers’ everyday needs founded in 2018 — previously raised two funding rounds back in 2019 with a $50 million Series A and $120 million Series B, TechCrunch shares. According to an emailed statement from OPay Chief Executive Officer Yahui Zhou, the hope is that the new funding will help the company “be the power that helps emerging markets reach a faster economic development.” “We believe our investment will help the company extend its offering to adjacent markets,” said Kentaro Matsui — a SoftBank Group...
The Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) has announced that they’ve hit the $250 million goal for their Black Economic Development Fund. As a result of hitting this goal, they’ve also announced that they’re investing in Black-led banks and real estate development opportunities. In a press release announcement, it was revealed that this fund was first funded last summer. It was part of LISC’s Project 10X, a $1 billion strategy to address racial gaps in health, wealth, and opportunity. The private investment fund has raised capital from 11 public and private corporations, with McKinsey and Company recently coming in with $15 million. Corporate investors in the Black Economic Development Fund include Netflix, which helped launch the fund, Paypal, Costco, Square, Inc., Aflac, Wayfair, DuPont, McKinsey and Co., ThermoFisher, HubSpot, and Dick’s Sporting Goods. “We’re excited about the outpouring of interest from impact investors because it speaks not only to the quality of the...
People of color are not having a great time in Silicon Valley. All too often, we hear stories reminding us that the traditional power structure in Silicon Valley is still hostile to Black and brown workers. However, if you’re a Black techie with enormous talent and a passion for creating world-changing technology, what are your options? It might seem like Silicon Valley is still the only place you can work on the coolest projects, but maybe we can look to a prominent entertainer for the alternative. At this year’s BET awards ceremony, Tyler Perry said to a group of fellow entertainers, “…while you are fighting for a seat at the table, I’ll be down in Atlanta building my own.” On that note, here’s a list of cities filled with Black techies and entrepreneurs building their own table. 1. Atlanta, GA Home to three Historically Black Colleges and Universities — Morehouse College, Spelman College, and Clark Atlanta University — and the prestigious Georgia Institute of Technology, the city...