Grameen America Advances Racial Equity Initiative With New Branch in Memphis to Serve Black Women Entrepreneurs
NEW YORK, December 7, 2021 - National microfinance organization Grameen America announced the launch of its 26th branch in Memphis, Tennessee to bring affordable credit and capital to financially underserved women in the city. This new Memphis location will be the first new branch in the Grameen America network dedicated to the organization's racial equity initiative, Elevating Black Women Entrepreneurs, or Elevate, which aims to invest $1.3 billion in loans to 80,000 Black women entrepreneurs over the next ten years. With this opening, Memphis will enhance Grameen America’s support to black-owned businesses by joining existing efforts in Newark and New York City.
Grameen America envisions an inclusive society in which all entrepreneurs, regardless of gender, race or income, have access to fair and affordable financial services to support upward economic mobility. The organization, which has invested in more than 142,500 members since opening in 2008, recently achieved a historic milestone of investing $2 billion in microloans to minority businesswomen. Grameen America’s first Elevate branch, the organization’s 20th city, aims to address barriers to financial access and education experienced by underserved women in Memphis. The organization plans to open two additional Elevate branches in predominantly Black communities over the next three years, with expansion to Atlanta expected in early 2022.
“The longstanding effects of systemic racism in the United States has resulted in a lack of access to affordable credit and capital for Black women entrepreneurs,” said President and CEO of Grameen America, Andrea Jung. “The opening of Memphis and expansion in Newark and New York City is just the beginning. Grameen America is committed to using our tools and experience to bring financial inclusion to financially excluded women of color across the country.”
With a proven track record in addressing socioeconomic barriers, Grameen America is uniquely positioned to impact Memphis’s low-income businesswomen. A staggering 56% of the city’s Black women live below the poverty line, resulting in high levels of exclusion from the mainstream financial system. Additionally, one out of every three Black women in Memphis considers themselves to be involved in an entrepreneurial activity. With microloans, training, and support, all underserved entrepreneurial women in Memphis can overcome gaps in access to capital and take their businesses to the next level.
To fully address the needs of financially underserved women in predominantly Black communities, the organization is employing a test and learn approach across all Elevate branches to determine whether program enhancements have the potential to strengthen outcomes for our members. The first series of programmatic enhancements, which are already underway, prioritize the formation of community partnerships in understanding their influence on member outreach, recruitment, upfront training and retention. The Grameen America Elevate partner organizations selected will consist of a variety of industry specialists, including minority-focused CDFIs, financial education and technical assistance providers, and community and religious organizations.
Grameen America’s branch in Memphis opens with catalytic support from The Studio @ Blue Meridian and additional support from the Truist Foundation. By 2029, Grameen America aims to invest $92 million in loan capital to over 8,800 Black women entrepreneurs in Memphis.
About Grameen America
Founded by Nobel Peace Prize recipient Muhammad Yunus, Grameen America is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit microfinance organization dedicated to helping women who live in poverty build small businesses to create better lives for their families. The organization offers microloans, training, and support to transform communities and fight poverty in the United States. Since opening in January 2008, Grameen America has invested over $2.12 billion in more than 142,500 low-income women entrepreneurs. Opening originally in Jackson Heights, Queens, Grameen America has expanded to 20 cities in Austin, TX, Boston, MA, Camden, NJ, Charlotte, NC, Chicago, IL, Connecticut, Fresno, CA, Houston, TX, Indianapolis, IN, Los Angeles, CA, Memphis, TN, Miami, FL, Newark, NJ, New York City, NY, Omaha, NE, Oakland, CA, San Jose, CA, Trenton, NJ and Union City, NJ.
Media Contacts
media@grameenamerica.org