Black Banks Matter

Many have heard of food deserts, where communities do not have access to fresh, affordable food and grocery stores. In these same communities, often predominantly populated by low-income or minority residents, there are also bank deserts where there is limited access to financial services and banks.

Black-owned banks often serve these communities of higher need when the large banks with ample resources do not. Bank Black USA worked with Professor Terri Friedline, PhD, at the Institute for Policy & Social Research, The University of Kansas to develop maps that demonstrate the need and impact that black banks have in communities across the US. The data is from Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (2014), the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, the National Credit Union Administration (2014), and the U.S. Census Bureau, 2010-2014 American Community Survey.

The maps show the location of black-owed banks, credit unions, and all other (predominantly white-owned) banks. They demonstrate that the black banks serve not only black and minority communities that have fewer bank locations but they also connect to other important indicators like poverty and income, education levels, and homeownership. For example, in the maps of the Detroit area below, you can see the black-owned banks (red dots) relative to the geography of race, income, and education in the metropolitan area.