British Black-Owned Startups Create Platforms To Tackle Financial Insecurities

Black-owned startups in the U.K. are finding ways to protect families from financial woes, Bloomberg reports.

Financial advice bloggers Ken and Mary Okoroafor wrote that the Bank of England’s base interest rate in 2017 was 0.25%. With the average house costing over $250,000, there was no wealth coming into the Black household. Now, the bank’s rates have increased, disproportionately leaving minorities in a bad spot. But the Okoroafors and other entrepreneurs are building tools to protect families from falling into a cycle of debt.

The couple’s business blog turned into a lucrative business, The Humble Penny, a series of educational online courses covering important topics from investing to affiliate marketing. A majority of the class participants are Black or of African origin. The goal is to help families become financially independent. “Number one: They want to become debt-free,” Ken said.

Advice from the couple focuses on financial literacy, living within one’s means, and managing assets such as stocks and housing.

Grouping savings together is another way families and couples are battling economic scrutiny, especially those with startups. Apps like Pardna help groups of people to create one savings account that they can all contribute to with one goal in mind. Paul Henriques, who created Pardna in 2020 to help people get out of the mindset of relying on high-cost credit, commented, “People seem to be using Pardna to avoid falling into a financial trap.”

Back in the United States, HBCUs like Spelman College have created resources to help their students start their journey to financial freedom. BLACK ENTERPRISE previously reported that this fall Spelman will launch a strategic partnership with Stackwell and Fintech in Action in order to help eliminate the racial wealth gap. The financial wellness pilot will provide Spelman students with finance and investing courses as well as an account of $250 from Stackwell, the digital investment platform, to get a head start on building wealth while in college.