Northwestern Mutual To Expand Presence In New York With New Offices In Harlem, Long Island

Northwestern Mutual, a national financial services company, has announced it will open two new offices in Long Island and Harlem.

Financial Advisor Anthony Williams will oversee the Harlem office working with financial professionals who grew up in Harlem and the Bronx and have experience doing business in the community. Williams and his staff will use their community connections to identify opportunities for financial education and support for businesses owned by Black, Latinx, and other underrepresented groups.

“This exciting expansion is an opportunity to deliver financial planning solutions to historically
underserved communities,” said Tim Gerend, chief distribution officer, Northwestern Mutual. “We’re
looking forward to developing deep community relationships in both Harlem and Cedarhurst—providing meaningful financial guidance to clients and offering rewarding career opportunities to
current and future advisors.”

Financial Advisor Moshe Alpert will manage the Long Island office, which will be located in Cedarhurst. Williams and Alpert will work with Managing Partner Steve Abbass, who collaborated with the bank’s new Distribution Growth Ventures group to identify opportunities in market expansion, competitive recruitment, and other innovations in both Harlem and Long Island.

The coronavirus pandemic has disproportionately affected Black and Latino Americans, especially financially. More than 40% of Black small businesses anticipated closing in the first six months of the pandemic. Latino-owned businesses also suffered during the pandemic. According to Forbes, 42% of Latino-owned businesses shut down during the first two months of the pandemic and are down 21% during the 12-month period between Sept. 2019 and Sept. 2020.

Harlem was known as an underbanked area of New York. However, in recent years Chase, Bank of America, M&T Bank, and TD Bank have all opened branches in the predominately Black and Latino section of Manhattan. Northwestern Mutual does not offer typical banking services, but like traditional banks, it wants to include its footprint and provide services to residents in the area.