Underbanked.
This term has been said, loosely, for far too long. There are millions in modern civilization without access to financial services. A lack of confidence and understanding are among the main factors to blame for this problem.
David Dwumah, a serial entrepreneur and former expert in public and private financial services with experience working in areas such as Citizens Financial Group Inc (NYSE: CFG) and the Federal Reserve, founded Our bank, a member of the Council for Inclusive Capitalism, to extend digital banking to those who do not have access to it.
Read below to learn more about Dwumah’s mission.
Benzinga: Hi David. Glad to finally be in touch with you. Tell me a bit about your background and what motivated you to start this journey.
Dwumah: I was born in Ghana, West Africa. Originally, I came to the United States to study at university on a scholarship, at the University of North Florida.
The goal was to finish college, spend a few years in banking and return to my home country.
Two masters later, I found myself in the financial services practice of EY which allowed me to be widely exposed to the financial ecosystem, working with many asset managers, banks, insurance companies. The whole industry.
Fast forward, I spent the next five years at the Federal Reserve in Boston hyper focused on what we call critical financial infrastructure and many of the processes that underpin banking and payments infrastructure at large.
I believe that my cumulative personal and professional experiences have given me the opportunity to deepen my understanding of potential solutions, so that the financial system as a whole works for everyone.
So what exactly is the problem you are looking to solve?
I want to create a level playing field for historically disenfranchised communities.
I like to point out Susu, which is a kind of informal banking system where people lend you money on the basis of trust. Mobile money was fundamentally changing that and driving people to provide financial services.
I made all of these observations every year I was in Ghana, in addition to my professional experience and everything that has happened in the last year in terms of racial justice and the need for change.
The technology is mature enough now and I don’t need hundreds of billions to tell the difference.
What is OurBanc? What are the most impactful solutions you offer?
I believe most of the impact occurs outside of technology. It’s more about the mission and how you build what you build, and how you build it, and the people and organizations you align with.
We bring personal financial management capabilities to market, a consolidated view of a user’s financial activities so that they have a central point where they can see all of their financial activities, make better decisions and improve their financial health. .
We’re looking at new capabilities and ways of thinking around open banking – faster, fairer payments.
How to engage consumers? How do you get people to adopt OurBanc?
We believe that you can’t solve the racial wealth gap if you don’t engage people in a meaningful way. To be more than a customer, we have to co-create.
We think we’re probably the first fintech to have done this in any meaningful way, and on day one we opened up our startup cycle to ordinary people where they also have the opportunity to invest alongside institutional and accredited investors.
It is about consumers having a place at the table where decisions are made and having a real skin in the game.
Airbnb Inc (NASDAQ: ABNB) and Uber Technologies Inc (NYSE: UBER) were the first iterations of the sharing economy. We are building the second iteration.
What are the typical barriers for underbanked people? What are you doing about them?
It’s one or the other, they don’t have enough money to maintain the balances. So we will just eliminate [minimum] balances or make them low in dollars.
Number two is confidence.
When people, especially in minority communities, go to a bank, they are not welcomed.
For example, when you go to New York, there are a lot of banks. However, if you go to the Bronx there are very few big network ATMs. So if you are using these ATMs, you will have to pay some off-grid fees.
How do you solve this problem? People have to be part of the process. If I’m a part of the process and have a voice in the process, that’s how you build trust.
If we make the community part of our fundraising process, there is a better alignment between what we are building and what their needs are.
What are you most excited about starting this business?
Over the next few years, there are three trends that we are passionate about. Open banking, faster payments and the promise of digital currency.
Between open banking, faster payments, and CBDCs, we think these, in aggregation… are equalizers.
We’re at an inflection point to truly deliver on the promise of fintech, because it’s not just about access, but fairness.
How can we help you in your initiative?
We invite all who share our vision and perspective to join us in multiple ways.
First, they can check out our ongoing crowdfunding increase on Wefunder. Second, they can share our story with their friends and family.
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