With the goal of increasing access to capital and banking resources in communities traditionally underserved by financial services, The Claro Group (Claro) announced it has shifted a significant portion of the firm’s working capital to Liberty Bank and Trust (Liberty), a New Orleans-based black-owned bank operating in the Chicago area. The action demonstrates the firm’s commitment to what’s becoming known as the #BankBlack or #JusticeDeposits movement.
Notes Managing Director and head of Claro’s Diversity, Equity & Inclusion (DEI) initiatives, Katie McNally: “The last two years have been life-changing for us all, particularly amidst the backdrop of the pandemic, continued racial injustice, and related civil unrest. We at Claro are committed to supporting equity in all forms, both inside our firm and in society at large. We are honored to have the opportunity to support Liberty and their mission as advocates for homeownership, economic development, education, and health care for African Americans.”
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A sign of the degree to which the community was underserved by financial institutions at the time, when Liberty first opened its doors in New Orleans in 1972, over 2,000 people were in the parking lot waiting to go into a trailer to open an account. In the decades since, Liberty has expanded into communities nationwide, helping untold numbers of residents to become first-time homebuyers and financing the development of thousands of businesses. Liberty has also shown its commitment to education and healthcare through investments in community-based schools and healthcare research facilities.
Adds Todd O. McDonald, President of Liberty: “Liberty Bank is excited to collaborate with The Claro Group to help enrich some of our most underserved communities. Celebrating our 50th anniversary this year, Liberty continues a legacy of service, integrity and dedication to community and business development. We know there are numerous choices when it comes to financial partners, and we’re excited for Claro to join us on our mission to ‘empower more people to achieve more freedom.’”
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Claro’s Chairman, John Cadarette, concludes: “We are excited to follow such firms as Netflix, Twitter, Costco, and others in providing additional resources for black-owned and black-run banks to help rejuvenate the communities they serve. It’s our sincere hope that other companies and non-profits will come alongside us to elevate the level of capital available to families and business owners in these communities in a tangible and meaningful way.”
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