Wells Fargo, the multinational financial services company, has announced investments in six Black Minority Depository Institutions (MSIs).
The investments were part of a pledge Wells Fargo made last year to invest up to $50 million in Black-owned banks. As part of the investment, the banks will also have access to Wells Fargo’s team for financial and technological development in order to help each MSI grow and benefit.
“These investments are designed to help the banks become stronger and more impactful to the minority communities they serve, which leads to economic revitalizati
on and job opportunities,” Bill Daley, vice chairman of Public Affairs at Wells Fargo, said in the release. “So many communities have suffered over the past year. MDIs need capital, but they can also benefit from access to other resources, and Wells Fargo is committed to building lasting, strategic relationships with these institutions in support of their goals.”The banks are Broadway Federal Bank, Carver Federal Savings Bank, Citizens Savings Bank and Trust, Commonwealth National Bank, M&F Bank, and Optus Bank.
“The investment and support from Wells Fargo will allow us to substantially increase our impact on closing the racial wealth gap. We are grateful and committed to ensuring that this capital helps drive transformational wealth-building opportunities for our communities and customers,” said Dominik Mjartan, president and CEO of Optus Bank.
The investment complements other initiatives the bank has made to serve all its customers and communities, including being one
of the first banks to sign the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency’s Project REACh MDI Pledge.Wells Fargo also invested all gross processing fees it received from the Paycheck Protection Program last year — approximately $400 million — to nonprofits helping small businesses navigate the pandemic, with an emphasis on Black, African American, and other minority-owned small businesses as part of its Open For Business Fund.