Author: Stephone Coward

Billionaire Ray Dalio wants to know “What’s yo Cash App?”. The founder of Bridgewater Associates, which is the largest hedge fund in the world, is putting his money, power, and respect behind making Cash App the bank of Gen Z. This growing age bracket opts for financial technology for their banking needs more than traditional in person banking. With the Black community making up 13.8% unbanked and 31.1% of the underbanked group in the U.S., Cash App like so many in the business community, are banking on Hip Hop culture and Dalio’s connection with its major influencers to appeal to younger generations.

You can now add Tariq Trotter, more notably known as Black Thought, the lead MC of The Roots, to the growing list of influential people entering the venture capital space. He joins other notable musicians such as Nas, QueensBridge Ventures Partners, Jay Z, Marcy Ventures Partners and professional athletes such as Kevin Durant and Serena Williams, who are now using their financial and cultural capital to provide funding for Black entrepreneurs. He is now a General Partner with Impellent Ventures, a $10.5 million fund aiming to raise $50 million.

We have moved into both a 24-hour life and news cycle with the aid of technology, and sadly, the only thing that caused the world to slow down is a pandemic that has exacerbated the mental health crisis with Black youth in our country. Amanda Calhoun, MD, MPH, recently wrote, “the mental health of Black American youth was in a crisis long before COVID-19”. A new CDC report highlighted the suicide rate for Black girls and women ages 10 to 24 increased more than 30% in 2020 and 23% among Black boys and men in the same age group, as the multi-billion mental health sector continues to thrive while leaving some people behind.

The demands for social reform have made it from the streets to shareholder suites. Companies are now being called upon by their shareholders to address race-related policies and practices that impact their workforce and the communities they serve. Bloomberg reported that the number of environmental and social responsibility shareholder proposals over the last 12 months jumped by 61% from a year ago among companies in the Russell 1000 stock market index.

By Stephone Coward Black workers had the highest resignation rates due to burnout 48 million people voluntarily left their jobs in 2021 The balance of power in employee and employer relations has shifted when 48 million people voluntarily left their jobs last year. Companies across the country are understaffed at such an unprecedented level ushering

By Stephone Coward
– The Black homeownership rate is 30% lower than the 74% white homeownership rate
– Americans who owned homes had a median net worth of $255K, more than 40X the median net worth of renters Homeownership has traditionally been viewed as a way to ensure that your future generations have the resources to chart their paths to success. The blueprint has been: attend and graduate from college, land a good-paying job, get married, then buy a home where you can raise a family and pass it down to the next generation. However, the Black homeownership rate is 30% lower than the 74% white homeownership rate, meaning there are less homes to pass down in effort to help build up Black wealth.‍ Why This Matters: NPR reported, “for most American families, home equity is their largest asset.” Labor and supply shortages have limited the construction of new homes, making existing homes a premium item on the market. For homeowners looking to sell, rising home values can turn a home’s equity into money in your pocket to do things like start a business, sidestep the student loan crisis, or pass down wealth.

By Stephone Coward Black women make up  8.7% of the municipal workforce versus just 6.4% of the private sector. State and local governments have slashed 1.3 million jobs Local and state governments are the engines that keep the country running, and Black people have historically been essential to keeping these institutions afloat. More specifically, Black

By Stephone Coward Serena Williams and Naomi Osaka make up 5 of the top 10 highest-paid Black female athletes The world’s 10 highest-paid female athletes earned a combined $167M before taxes in 2021 Black female athletes are known to be some of the best players in sports regardless of gender. They are not only in

By Stephone Coward White farmers across the country have filed lawsuits to stop $4B in direct debt relief payments authorized in the American Rescue Plan that would help Black farmers seeking debt relief Black farm ownership has fallen from 16M to 2M in acreage, most of which has occurred during the past 70 years There

By Stephone Coward Suicide rate for Black girls and women ages 10 to 24 increased more than 30% in 2020 and 23% among Black boys and men in the same age group The mental health industry was a $383.3B sector in 2020 and is estimated to reach $537.9B by 2030 We have moved into both

By Stephone Coward Bank of America plans to hire 10,000 more employee from Low-to-Moderate-Income communities by 2025 The Community Reinvestment Act requires banks to meet the needs of LMI communities they do business with Bank of America (BAC +1.57%) ended the third quarter of 2021 by announcing through its Pathway program launched in 2018, that

By Stephone Coward A $190B pandemic windfall for school districts across the country through the CARES Act aims to repair our education system 80% of funds can be used as school officials deem “reasonable and necessary” Americans have witnessed the bailout of Wall Street banks, now we may finally see financial relief to the most

By Stephone Coward A federal appeals court denied hearing the NFL concussion case its $1B “race-norming” settlement Former NFL players receive $200K if they have early-stage and moderate dementia In a stunning turn of events after the NFL’s $1 billion “race-norming” case settlement, a federal appeals court denied hearing an NFL concussion case, leaving the