How To Close The Inequality Wealth Gap According To 5 Black Women In Finance

The United States has long been seen as a land of economic opportunity. And the numbers suggest that’s true. Nowhere in the world is home to more millionaires than America, with more than 18 million people boasting a seven-figure net worth as of October 2019. But while that figure reflects America’s considerable wealth, other statistics paint a less positive financial picture. 

For example, in 2018, families whose household wealth fell between the 50th and 90th percentiles accounted for just 1% of America’s total wealth. But wealth—the value of a person’s total assets minus the value of their total liabilities—isn’t just divided by class but by race and gender as well. In 2016, black families, on average, had a net worth of 10 cents to the dollar of the typical white family, while women owned 32 cents on the dollar when compared to men. The intersection of those two gaps sees black women bearing the brunt of wealth inequality. That wealth inequality is made worse by a pay gap in which Black women earn 61 cents for each dollar their white male counterparts do. 

These statistics are disheartening, but there are many black women actively working to improve them. These women are working at some of the top investment banks in the world, generating and offering capital to women-owned businesses, leading financial literacy initiatives for minority communities, and breaking ground in the finance industry with their innovative businesses. I spoke with five of these women about what drives them and their advice for minorities and women pursuing financial freedom. 

Chelsea Crowder, Vice President, JP Morgan Private Bank  

As a Black woman, in my work and life, I think about access to capital and wealth accumulation for black people and women. There is no simple solution to closing the racial wealth gap. It persists in this country and is a remnant of slavery, Jim Crow, and institutionalized racism. Despite making up 13% of the US population, Black people constitute less than 3% of the wealth in this country.

What we do have is culture. We are the purveyors of American culture when you think about what we eat, how we dress, the music we listen to, the sports we dominate, and even how we style our hair. We have to make sure that in the chain of value creation, we are owning and continuing the support and patronize institutions in our communities. The ideas and the value are there. Now, we just have to make sure that we are the ones capturing it.

I think that one of the most important skills is the ability to self-advocate. Raise your hand. Ask why. The idea that you can keep your head down, do great work, and that the work will speak for itself suggests that we live in a world where every opportunity is given equally. We’ve got to assert ourselves for opportunities and know the worth of our work and our ideas.

Finding the right mentor is essential. I call my mom my chief strategy officer. I have had to make tough decisions with respect to my career and to have someone to bounce ideas off of is so important. As important as it is to have a mentor, it’s also crucial to have a sponsor, someone who is in a position to advocate for you to get the opportunity.

note: At the time of this interview Crowder was an employee of Goldman Sachs and has since moved to JP Morgan Private Bank.

Tadia James, Venture Capitalist, Gingerbread Capital 

I was watching the news with my dad, and there was a story that came up about women making 70% of what men make. That was about 20 years ago, and it’s funny how much those statistics haven’t changed much. This was a pivotal moment for me because I learned at an early age that my experience as a woman in business would likely be very different from my male counterparts. I began to understand that my different perspective and life experiences as a woman were a unique advantage and part of my superpower. It’s important for both women and people of color to have a strong sense of self worth in business and know their value as not to settle for anything less than what they deserve. 

Gingerbread Capital was created with the intention of investing in female founders leading high growth businesses. We are vocal advocates for this community because we believe in the power of diversity to achieve optimal outcomes. Research has shown repeatedly that investing in teams with at least one female founder tends to produce larger returns so we focus on investing in talented founders with big vision and the ability to execute. Investing in underrepresented founders is undoubtedly a key component of closing the wealth gap for current and future generations. 

Business environments across all sectors can be tough to navigate for underrepresented communities largely because leadership is often not reflective of these communities. However, regardless of what your workplace environment looks like, the single biggest factor to building wealth lies within you. Double down on investing in your mindset and things that nourish you so that you are equipped to show up as the best version of yourself in all environments. It doesn’t matter how much you save or how much you invest if you fundamentally don’t believe that you are capable of building wealth. The reality is that inequality exists in many places – we know the stats. But how you respond is completely within your control. Some people will be discouraged and consume themselves with fear and what people think of them while others will push forward in spite of and remain focused on their goals. It was once said that “The person that believes they can and the person that believes they can’t are both right.” People are much more powerful in shaping their outcomes than they may think. Believe in you. Mindset is key.

Iyanna Vaughn, founder, Lovely Financials 

Wealth, to me, means that there are no limits to the possibilities in your life. Through the women that I serve every day and through my podcast, I generate these conversations where I talk candidly about how you can start wealth building habits today. There’s such a misconception that wealth is an endpoint, but wealth really begins with the small actions you take today so that your future self can reap the benefits. Discipline is, hands down, the most underrated skill a woman of colour needs to succeed financially. Every day, small actions compound dramatically. 

It took me going through difficult life lessons to handle my finances better. I did a complete career change to a financial strategist for this very reason. I serve from a lens that completely empathizes with those who grew up without any financial education or guidance. I’ve created my lane in the business finance world with a mission to facilitate what wealth looks like in the lives of women of color. The first step is to change the language from ‘being bad with money’ to saying, ‘this is a challenge I’m working through and I’m worthy of overcoming.’ 

I believe we empower the next generation by showcasing this new mindset around wealth building. If the next generation witnesses a genuine belief that we are worthy of wealth, there will be a ripple effect. Doing this can do what I call ‘creating new sets of DNA’ to overcome generational poverty. For example, I didn’t have access to financial management education, but I’m already equipping my six-year-old on how to build wealth through play.

Alniesha Carter, founder, Tax Prep Evolution, Inc. 

When I first started building a franchise system, I felt like this sector was overlooked due to the extensive amount of research, development, and time required to create a business model of this magnitude. So, with that being said, to become the first Black-woman-owned tax franchise system in the country was not only a historical moment for the company but also for the people within the community that had never believed that filling this space as possible. I have single-handedly assisted over 50 black women to become tax business owners and entrepreneurs through my company. 

I know there is a lot of discrimination within the industry, definitely when it comes to banking. The people who are on the inside loaning out the money and giving these opportunities, they don’t look like black women. I have experienced discrimination as a black female entrepreneur especially in the banking industry. It took learning and building relationships inside and outside of the bank. When I started to do that things changed for me. Before then, I self funded my projects.

Although systematic biases do exist, you can’t let that detour you when you have a vision to fulfill. You have to get educated on credit, debt, interest rates, savings, retirement accounts, real estate and the stock market. It’s a lot of discipline. Things that have helped me in terms of getting organized financially are staying on top of my credit and bills, making sure I’m within my budget, making sure I’m putting money away to save, and investments. 

Dr. Pamela Gurley, CEO, Clark and Hill Enterprise 

While I am conscious about being a double minority in a minority community, my goal is always to be upfront about entrepreneurship with all of my clients. Being in business as a minority is not easy. As a matter of fact, there is a lot of harsh criticism about minority-owned businesses that surface nearly daily. 

The only way to protect the wealth we attain in our community is to share our experiences that will provide growth and opportunities for change. This is what real support looks like. It is allowing the imperfections of business to become better through constructive feedback. So, we need to move away from being heavily concerned with who has wealth, who gets wealthy and how, and who ‘deserves’ it. That way of thinking further deteriorates a culture that has been systematically set up to fail.

[For personal wealth,] it is important to foster relationships and network with a community of like minds willing to exchange critical and thought-provoking information about wealth and how to not only build it but sustain it. Personally, I have learned so much about wealth from other women, and it has given me context to think differently during moments of insanity. Building wealth is about community. It is about authenticity. It is not a solo project from start to finish. We need one another to be great. 

But let me say this: when it comes to finding a mentor or champion, “business” does not have a color. Careers do not have a color. It is also not about finding the right mentor/champion, it is about finding many. Building a business or career is about versatility, diversity, and growth. It is about being able to engage the right people during different phases of development and sustainment.