Ebony Banks

Ebony Banks

Kelly Dilworth is a personal finance expert who has written hundreds of articles for dozens of publications, including Forbes Advisor, LendingTree, and CreditCards.com. She holds a bachelor's degree from Sarah Lawrence College.

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While there used to be many more Black-owned banks, they were disproportionately affected by the 2008 financial crisis. More than half of the Black-owned banks in the U.S. shut down between 2007 and 2019. Systemic racism and widespread racist practices, such as redlining, have historically weakened Black-owned banks’ financial positions, making it harder for them to withstand major shocks. Despite those historic challenges, the future looks bright for many Black-owned financial institutions, thanks in part to digital innovations, new technological opportunities, and increasing support and investment.

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Black-owned banks and credit unions have played an important role in supporting Black communities throughout history, and they continue to do so today. Despite facing decades of exclusion and discriminatory practices, these financial institutions persist in improving access to bank accounts and financing in traditionally underserved communities.

In recent years, Black-owned banks have enjoyed rising support from the general public, major corporations, and even other banks. For example, since 2020, Bank of America, Wells Fargo, and JP Morgan Chase have all publicly committed millions of dollars in financial support and investment to Black-owned financial institutions, as have Netflix, Paypal, and Microsoft.

Here’s a closer look at the history of Black-owned financial institutions, the challenges they’ve faced, and the unique benefits they offer their communities. To help you #BankBlack, we’ve compiled a list of Black-owned banks and credit unions, including the states they serve and their number of branches, near the bottom of this article.

Black-owned banks and credit unions are federally insured depository institutions that serve customers from all racial and ethnic backgrounds but are largely owned or directed by Black Americans.

Black-owned banks are included in the FDIC's Minority Depository Institution (MDI) Program, which seeks to preserve and promote MDIs. To qualify as an MDI, at least 51% of the bank's voting stock must belong to shareholders who are Black, Asian American, Hispanic, or Native American. An institution can also be considered if the majority of its board of directors are members of these minorities and it serves a predominantly minority community.

The FDIC maintains a list of MDIs, which it further subdivides by race and ethnicity. As of the most recent update in February 2022, which includes data from Dec. 31, 2021, there were 143 MDIs, including 19 Black-owned banks.

Like all credit unions in the U.S., Black-owned credit unions are regulated by the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA). The NCUA’s definition of MDI is slightly different from the FDIC’s. To qualify as an MDI, the majority of a credit union’s membership, board of directors, and community must belong to the minority groups listed above, which are defined by the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery and Enforcement Act of 1989 .

Black-owned banks have historically served communities that were otherwise overlooked or shut out by other financial institutions. In addition, Black-owned banks offer support to entrepreneurs and lower-income Black Americans who have been historically less likely to open accounts or borrow money from mainstream, often White, financial institutions—or outright prevented from doing so.

Many Black-owned banks are recognized as federal MDIs and/or Community Development Financial Institutions (CDFIs), which prioritize the needs of the underserved communities in which they are based.

Black-owned banks have a long and often painful history, dating back to the mid-19th century when the first bank committed to serving Black Americans opened. The Freedman's Savings Bank, once seen as a beacon of hope for formerly enslaved people, failed after less than a decade—causing more than 60,000 Black people to lose their savings, which would add up to $65 million in today's dollars.

Many historians blame the bank's failure on its mostly White administrators, who engaged in speculation and corrupt behavior; for example, one trustee used the bank's assets to benefit his own family business. The bank's failure, and the poor oversight that enabled it, helped seed profound distrust among many Black Americans toward the safety and reliability of mainstream financial institutions.

Even today, Black adults are significantly less likely than White adults to hold bank accounts, a factor that contributes to the racial wealth gap .

The first bank founded and run by Black Americans opened in 1888, and by the beginning of the Great Depression, more than 130 Black-owned financial institutions were operating across the country. "The motivation to create many Black banks [...] was rarely a purely financial endeavor or business opportunity," wrote Esther George, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City, in the foreword to "A Great Moral and Social Force," a book about the history of Black-owned banks. "Instead, many were created with a primary mission of public service."

However, the Great Depression decimated the number of Black-owned financial institutions. In addition, discriminatory practices once deemed legal sapped the wealth-building capabilities of the banks' customers. As University of California-Irvine Law Professor Mehsra Baradaran noted in her book, "The Color of Money," Black-owned banks have historically served a customer base whose own financial resources and prospects have been repeatedly hamstrung by centuries of racist policies and practices toward Black Americans, including decades of overt housing discrimination and deliberate exclusion from financial and social resources.

For example, by the mid-1930s, the Home Owners Loan Corporation and the Federal Housing Administration had introduced discriminatory lending practices known as redlining , in which they defined certain areas and neighborhoods as "higher-risk"—thinly veiled racism based on the race and ethnicity of the community's residents. These practices made it easier for mainstream lenders to avoid issuing mortgages to Black Americans, preventing them from buying homes and beginning to accumulate wealth.

While the Fair Housing Act of 1968 and the Home Mortgage Disclosure Act of 1975 prohibited redlining, its effects persist today in the racial homeownership gap : In December 2021, the homeownership rate for Black Americans was 43% compared with 74% for White Americans.

The number of Black-owned banks declined through the 1980s and 1990s. The 2008 financial crisis was particularly devastating: More than half of Black-owned banks in the U.S. closed their doors between 2007 and 2019. Today, they make up just 0.4% of the 4,377 insured banks in the U.S.

Black-owned banks have struggled to respond to economic shocks due to their smaller size and limited assets. “As of the second quarter of 2021, Black-owned banks held about $6 billion in total combined assets, as compared to over $22 trillion in total assets in the U.S. banking system as a whole,” testified Robert James II, chairman of the National Bankers Association, before the Senate Banking Subcommittee on Financial Institutions and Consumer Protections in February 2022. “Put another way, Black-owned banks only control 27 thousandths of 1% of total bank assets in the United States.”

Most loans issued by MDIs, including Black-owned banks, are secured by real estate, such as mortgages, James told the Senate subcommittee. “The legacy of redlining and associated chronic undervaluing of real estate in Black communities created lower asset values for minority banks’ collateral, which led to massive write-downs of bank collateral.” This collateral is essential in allowing banks to grow, receive more deposits, and withstand loan losses and defaults, which increased sharply during the 2008 financial crisis. “Without access to capital markets or large pools of high-net-worth investors, many Black MDIs were forced to exhaust their capital reserves, failing as a result,” said James.

Increasing support for Black-owned banks has many financial leaders feeling optimistic about the future. The viral #BankBlack movement launched by rapper Killer Mike in 2016 inspired many people and organizations to move their money to Black-owned financial institutions, boosting their assets. The calls were renewed and intensified in 2020 during social justice protests after the killings of Ahmaud Arbery, George Floyd, and Breonna Taylor. One Black-owned bank in North Carolina saw a 20% jump in deposits in 2020, its president told public radio station WBUR. Netflix pledged to move $100 million in deposits into Black-run financial institutions, and Microsoft committed to investing $100 million in MDIs, focusing on Black-owned banks.

Today, there are 19 FDIC-approved Black-owned banks. The most recent change to the number occurred in October 2021, when Liberty Bank acquired Tri-State Bank of Memphis. Because banks and credit unions have important differences, we’ve opted to split them into two separate tables, so you’ll find a list of credit unions further down.

Some branches are temporarily closed due to COVID-19. However, most of these financial institutions offer online banking, so they’re available to customers nationwide.

While the NCUA counts more than 250 Black-owned credit unions as part of its MDI Preservation Program , we’ve opted to list the 30 largest here, based on their assets as of Sept. 30, 2021.

To join a credit union, you must typically meet membership criteria, such as living or working in a specific county or being employed by a city, state, or federal government.
The answer depends on how you measure a bank's size. City First Bank became the richest Black-owned bank after merging with Broadway Federal Bank in the spring of 2021. A Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) and Certified B Corp, City First Bank boasts more than $1 billion in assets and more than $700 million in deposits.
However, the nationwide bank OneUnited—also a Community Development Financial Institution—is still frequently cited as the country's biggest Black-owned bank based on the number of customers it serves. It also markets itself as the nation's first Black internet bank.
As of February 2022, there are 19 FDIC-insured Black-owned banks in the U.S. The most recent change to the number of Black-owned banks occurred in October 2021, when Liberty Bank acquired Tri-State Bank of Memphis.
Bank failures are complex and can occur for a variety of reasons, including a decline in resources and capital or challenges in the operating environment. Black-owned banks have historically faced unique headwinds that have made it much more difficult for them to profitably hold deposits and lend money. For example, Black-owned banks have historically served a customer base whose own financial resources and prospects have been repeatedly limited by centuries of racist policies and practices, including decades of overt housing discrimination and deliberate exclusion from financial and social resources.
In addition, many Black-owned banks have seen their own wealth-building opportunities undercut by social, environmental, and structural challenges, including local and federal policies that have uniquely disadvantaged minority-owned financial institutions.
FDIC. “ Minority Depository Institutions List ,” See “MDI Lists” for downloadable Excel files.
National Credit Union Administration. “ Minority Depository Institution Preservation ,” See “Qualifying as a Minority Depository Institution.”
Independent Community Bankers of America. “ Why We Need Black-Owned Banks .”
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. “ Black-Owned Banks and the Communities They Serve ,” see “Black Communities and Banking Mistrust.”
Federal Reserve Bank of Kansas City. “ Foreword: A Great Moral and Social Force .”
Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis. “ Black-Owned Banks and the Communities They Serve ,” see “The Potential for Change.”
Microsoft. “ Addressing Racial Injustice ,” See “Our Ecosystem.”
Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Washington, DC
Alabama, Illinois, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Michigan, Mississippi, Missouri, Tennessee
Maryland, New Jersey, Virginia, Washington, DC
15 total, 10 of which are in the U.S.
Pennsylvania, Virginia, Washington, DC
Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Tennessee

Updated
May 2, 2022 . What changed?
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Omega Psi Phi Fraternity Federal Credit Union
South Side Community Federal Credit Union
Alabama, Illinois, Kansas, Louisiana, Mississippi and Michigan
Baton Rouge, Louisiana Thibodaux, Louisiana
Southern Teachers & Parents Federal Credit Union
Baltimore, Maryland Metropolitan area
Online-only, but serves: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming
Online-only, but serves: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming
Alabama, Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, and Tennessee
Kinston, North Carolina People who live, work, worship, or attend functions in the Lenoir, Greene, Jones, Craven, and Pitt counties are eligible for membership.
Winston-Salem, Durham, Raleigh, Greensboro, and Charlotte in North Carolina
Faith Community United Credit Union
Hill District Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Johns Island and part of Charleston, South Carolina
Community Owned Federal Credit Union
Tennessee, Kentucky, Texas and Alabama
Mount Olive Baptist Church Federal Credit Union
Oak Cliff Christian Federal Credit Union
Virginia State University Federal Credit Union
Howard University Employees Federal Credit Union
District of Columbia; Maryland; Newark, New Jersey; and one in Harlem, New York City
Online-only, but serves: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming
Columbia Savings and Loan Association
Online-only, but serves: Alabama, Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware, District of Columbia, Florida, Georgia, Hawaii, Idaho, Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Maine, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, Nevada, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, South Dakota, Tennessee, Texas, Utah, Vermont, Virginia, Washington, West Virginia, Wisconsin, and Wyoming
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