Pressley presses big banks for updates on $30 billion in racial equity pledges

Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) sent letters to the CEOs of big banks calling for updates about the progress of racial equity pledges made in the aftermath of the murder of George Floyd in 2020.

In letters sent to the CEOs of five large banks Wednesday — JPMorgan Chase, Bank of America, U.S. Bank, Wells Fargo and Citibank — Pressley called on each to present “a comprehensive financial audit report” by Oct. 23.

“As the CEO of one of the five largest banks in the nation, you play a key role in determining which individuals and communities have access to economic opportunity,” Pressley wrote each of the banks, before calling for “greater transparency” from the banks on the status of the commitments.

The congresswoman also noted disparities that have led to racial gaps in homeownership and wealth, while calling on banks to “use a racial justice lens in its decision-making to avoid further harm.”

The Hill has reached out to the banks for comment.

The letters cite tens of billions of dollars pledged by the banks to advance racial equity and support the Black community in the months following Floyd’s death.

The letters detailed a racial equity commitment of $30 billion made by JPMorgan Chase to help close the racial wealth gap and advance equity, a $1 billion commitment from Bank of America to tackle “economic and racial inequality accelerated by a global pandemic” and another $1 billion commitment from Citi to address the racial wealth gap.

Some of the banks have provided updates on the status of their pledges in recent years, including JPMorgan Chase. Bank of America also said in 2021 it would extend its four-year pledge by another year, while increasing the commitment to $1.25 billion.

But there has been scrutiny on how billions of dollars pledged by corporations to fight inequality in the wake of Floyd’s murder have been spent.

The congresswomen cited a 2020 study from The Hamilton Project that found white households held 84 percent of the wealth in the country, despite accounting for only 60 percent of the U.S. population.

She also pointed to data showing Black homeowners are more than twice as likely to be turned down for loans by banks than their white counterparts, as well as research that showed Black applicants “were turned away from a home loan at significantly higher rates than white applicants.”

“Since the founding of this country, the financial industry has benefited greatly from systemic racism and banks have been lead actors in the discrimination, exploitation, and degradation of Black communities in particular,” Pressley wrote.

“There is no denying that the banking system has historically entrenched disparities in our country, denying Black people opportunities to grow our wealth and achieve financial prosperity. Data in nearly every aspect of our economy confirm as much,” Pressley added.