30 emerging entrepreneurs compete in traveling
competition while designing products to improve the financial
health of black Americans
JPMorgan Chase Advancing Black Pathways and Chase for Business
are partnering with StartupBus to lead 30 budding entrepreneurs in
a national program designed for black technologists, designers, and
innovators.
Starting on July 24, these rising entrepreneurs will board the
“Advancing Black Entrepreneurs” StartupBus to compete in a
five-day, high-intensity tech entrepreneurship bootcamp. Now in its
10th year, with JPMorgan Chase joining for the first time, the
StartupBus competition has accelerated hundreds of emerging
entrepreneurs across the globe into a community of founders who
have gone on to launch companies that have attracted over $1
billion in venture funding and numerous acquisitions.
The participants were recruited through a highly selective
process from New York City, Baltimore, Washington, D.C., Detroit,
Atlanta and Oakland. They will gather at JPMorgan Chase’s Harlem
branch to begin a journey that will take them to stops at
historical sites and innovation hubs in Akron, Ohio; Detroit,
Atlanta, and Montgomery, Alabama, with the journey culminating in
New Orleans.
Along the way, the participants will hear from empowering
speakers and engage in a curriculum designed to train and inspire
the black business leaders of tomorrow. They will also be guided by
business and financial experts as they develop their products and
investor pitches. These mentors will consist of business leaders
from Chase, as well as business owners, technologists and past
participants of the competition.
Along the way, participants will form teams and conceive, build
and launch fully functional products designed to address and
improve the financial health of black Americans. On July 27-28, the
Advancing Black Entrepreneurs StartupBus will converge with teams
from seven other buses from across the U.S. to compete in New
Orleans and pitch their startups to a diverse lineup of prominent
investors and directors from Kapor Capital, Change Catalyst,
Backstage Capital, and Pantegrion Capital.
“StartupBus cross-pollinates unparalleled technological,
creative, and visionary talent, allowing our participants to
re-inject their expanded social capital, innovative mindsets, and
newfound energy into the communities they call home,” said Madelena
Mak and Colleen Wong, national directors of StartupBus. “The
Advancing Black Entrepreneurs bus marks a significant milestone in
our efforts to pave pathways to sustainable socioeconomic growth by
partnering with economic development organizations, diverse startup
ecosystems, and world-class, mission-driven companies such as
JPMorgan Chase.”
Sekou Kaalund, the Head of Advancing Black Pathways at JPMorgan
Chase, said that through the collaboration, the bank is looking to
teach rising black entrepreneurs about the startup process while
enhancing their financial knowledge through advice from business
bankers.
“This competition aligns with our long-term goal to drive
inclusive growth by empowering more people in the black community
to further their education, grow their careers and build wealth,”
Kaalund said.
According to Global Policy Solutions, if people of color owned
businesses at the same rates as white entrepreneurs, it would
result in 9 million more jobs and $300 billion in worker income.
Advancing Black Pathways and Chase for Business are focused on
improving the financial health of black Americans through increased
savings, improving credit, homebuyer counseling and helping
black-owned small businesses get access to the capital they
need.
“It’s important that we do our part to ensure diversity among
those who are creating the world of tomorrow. Investing in more
opportunities and resources for black entrepreneurs is a part of
that effort. We’re excited about this collaboration with StartupBus
because it brings the power of community and collaboration to life
in a really fun way” said Christopher Hollins, Managing Director,
Chase Business Banking.
JPMorgan Chase’s investment in the black community goes far
beyond this competition. Launched earlier this year, the Advancing
Black Pathways initiative was created to help black families
benefit from economic growth through a focus on education,
training, career opportunities and building lasting wealth through
homeownership and entrepreneurship. Advancing Black Pathways builds
on existing national JPMorgan Chase programs to strengthen
diversity, including The Fellowship Initiative, Advancing Black
Leaders and Entrepreneurs of Color Fund.
To learn more about Advancing Black Pathways, click here.
To learn more about Chase for Business, click here.
To learn more about StartupBus, click here.
About JPMorgan Chase &
Co.
JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) is a leading global
financial services firm with assets of $2.7 trillion and operations
worldwide. The Firm is a leader in investment banking, financial
services for consumers and small businesses, commercial banking,
financial transaction processing, and asset management. A component
of the Dow Jones Industrial Average, JPMorgan Chase & Co.
serves millions of customers in the United States and many of the
world's most prominent corporate, institutional and government
clients under its J.P. Morgan and Chase brands. Information about
JPMorgan Chase & Co. is available at www.jpmorganchase.com.
About StartupBus
StartupBus is a five-day tech entrepreneurship bootcamp and
competition on wheels since 2010. Equal parts hackathon, road trip,
and global alumni network, StartupBus is an annual competition
designed to empower the tech community, challenging top-tier talent
to hop on a bus, conceive, build, and launch a startup in 72 hours.
The next competition in 2019 will commence on July 24 - 28, with 7
buses heading towards New Orleans.
View source
version on businesswire.com: https://www.businesswire.com/news/home/20190723005595/en/
Media contact: Gurpreet Kaur, 212-270-8894
gurpreet.x3.kaur@jpmorgan.com
JP Morgan Chase (NYSE:JPM)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
JP Morgan Chase (NYSE:JPM)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024