Harris, Yellen focus on community finance at Freedman Forum
Vice President Kamala Harris and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen will host a forum to highlight how coronavirus pandemic relief dollars have helped support Black- and minority-owned businesses
WASHINGTON (AP) — Vice President Kamala Harris and Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen plan to use this year's Freedman's Bank Forum to highlight how federal coronavirus pandemic relief program funds have helped support Black- and minority-owned businesses.
Roughly 96% of Black-owned businesses are sole proprietorships and single-employee companies. These businesses have the hardest time finding funding and are often the first to suffer during economic downturns. They often turn to financial institutions for the underserved and other non-traditional lenders for micro-loans and grants.
Earlier this month, Treasury announced that it had disbursed roughly $8.28 billion in relief funds to 162 community financial institutions across the country through its Emergency Capital Investment Program.
