Greenwood’s existing community of over 1 million people will grow by 300,000, demonstrating the company’s continued leadership and commitment to supporting financial freedom for minorities
Greenwood, the digital banking platform for Black and Latino individuals and businesses, announced its acquisition of Kinly, a digitally native neobank building generational wealth for Black America and its allies, bringing the two largest fintechs focused on the Black community together as one company. The acquisition will help grow Greenwood’s ecosystem of over one million members and provide Kinly’s community of over 300,000 with priority access to Greenwood’s unique, comprehensive financial product that emphasizes community building and wealth creation for Black and brown people.
“The needs of our communities are many and I couldn’t be more excited to combine efforts with Greenwood to create lasting generational change.”
Since its launch in 2020, Kinly has raised $20 million in funding from key investors like Forerunner Ventures, Point72 Ventures, Anthemis, and Kapor Capital to improve the financial outcomes of Black America and allies through financial education, saving and wealth building. Over the last three years, Kinly has helped its growing community of members manage their day-to-day finances by offering early access to direct deposit funds, cash back rewards, and overdraft protections.
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“Kinly has always shared in our commitment to building a more transparent banking experience for Black Americans,” said Ryan Glover, CEO and co-founder of Greenwood. “The acquisition of Kinly represents a massive milestone for Greenwood as we continue in our shared effort to elevate financial tools available for our community. In partnership with Donald Hawkins from Kinly, we plan to grow our footprint and expand our services to provide best-in-class experiences for Black and brown families and businesses.”
As part of the acquisition, Donald Hawkins, founder and CEO of Kinly, will join the Greenwood executive management team as a Vice President to support key strategic initiatives in financial services and other areas with the goal of advancing economic empowerment, consumer-focused innovation, and local Atlanta-entrepreneurship.
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“Kinly’s mission of financial empowerment and wealth-building stems from lessons learned from Black America’s history,” said Donald Hawkins, CEO of Kinly.“The needs of our communities are many and I couldn’t be more excited to combine efforts with Greenwood to create lasting generational change.”
This acquisition marks Greenwood’s third acquisition over the last year, highlighting the company’s continued expansion plans to bring best-in-class offerings together for its members. Since the beginning of 2022, Greenwood has also acquired The Gathering Spot, A3C, and Valence to provide its members with access to additional professional services, networking opportunities and cultural experiences. The company also launched Elevate, a premium lifestyle product designed exclusively for Greenwood members, unlocking unique cultural and lifestyle experiences.
“It is another proud moment to again have two Black-owned companies on both sides of an M&A transaction,” said Paul Judge, Board member at Greenwood. “This shows the power of collaboration within the community. It is often said that if you want to go far, go together. This collaboration is a stellar example of that belief. We welcome Donald and Kinly to the Greenwood family.”
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