Black-owned bank receives Chase investment
Capital infusion will help firm up lending in underserved areas
Unity National Bank, a longstanding Black-owned bank based in Houston, said it will accelerate lending in under-served communities thanks to a multimillion-dollar investment by JPMorgan Chase.
The investment, announced Tuesday, is part of a broad initiative unveiled nearly a year ago by JPMorgan Chase to advance racial equity and help close the wealth gap. JPMorgan Chase, headquartered in New York, is the largest bank in the nation and Houston.
The amount of the investment was not disclosed.
Founded in 1963, Unity is one of the few Black-owned financial institutions in Texas and across the country. The capital infusion will help Unity increase its support of small businesses and mortgage lending, the bank said.
“This direct investment not only helps us lend more in the community, we get to upgrade technology and hire new professionals,” said Kwame Cain, general counsel with Unity Bank.
The community bank has 38 employees and has already begun technology upgrades, which will be implemented over the next few years, Cain said.
The enhancements include a suite of products for mobile banking such as Zelle and TransferNow, plus new credit software that allows the bank to process and approve loans faster. The upgrades are “bringing us to our goal of being a 21st century bank that’s technology driven,” Cain said.
As part of the alliance, Unity will offer JPMorgan’s money market funds to institutional investors through the bank’s Empower share class. The program provides an opportunity for large customers to support minorityled banks, which earn a share of the fund’s management fees to support their operations. To date, the Empower funds have $5 billion in assets under management.
Unity customers will also gain access to more than 16,000 of Chase’s ATMs without paying Chase fees, beginning Nov. 1.
Unity is a small bank with $183 million in deposits in the Houston market, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. The bank ranks 65th out of 95 banks in Houston by deposits.
Unity is headquartered in Third Ward at 2603 Blodgett and has another location in Missouri City. The bank also has a branch in Atlanta.
The Chase investment is part of an expanded initiative to invest a total of $100 million in Black and Hispanic-led banks and community development financial institutions. The initiative launched in February at four banks with an initial commitment of $50 million.
The latest round of investments added another 10 institutions, including Texas-based Unity and Rio Bank in McAllen.
Under the partnership, Unity will be able to team with Chase to provide financial literacy in the community, Cain said.