This Week in ESG and Impact Investing

Pursuing some accountability, a Black economist  has  filed a petition with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to require companies to report on Black Lives Matter (BLM) pledges. The request by William Michael Cunningham, who runs Washington, D.C.-based Creative Investment Research, says data from his firm shows 251 U.S. companies promised to battle systemic racism within their own organizations. All told, Cunningham claims those companies pledged $65 billion to boost their diversity and equity initiatives from May 2020 to May 2021. Yet, to date, Cunningham maintains that $500 million has been allocated toward such efforts. Compared to $500 million, Cunningham  estimates  the commitments by now should be $15 billion to $20 billion based largely on damages Black companies have suffered from the COVID-19 pandemic. He says his projections are tied to the companies having combined profits of $750 billion as of 2019. https://www.blackenterprise.com/black-economist-seeking-accounta

Black American Business Owners Sound Off in New Survey of PPP  by Jeffrey McKinney, Black Enterprise Magazine April 24, 2020 Financing from the Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is getting a cool reception from black business owners. A new national survey of 50 small businesses conducted Thursday by Washington, D.C.-based Creative Investment Research on the Paycheck Protection Program and the Economic Injury Disaster Loan Emergency Advance (EIDL) Program was intended to get a true pulse of how effective the lending programs have been. The survey came out the same day the House rati􀁽ed a bill by the Senate to pump roughly $310 billion more in loans to the Paycheck Protection Program, The Wall Street Journal reports. The PPP exhausted its initial $350 billion funding last week after being rolled out on April 3. The program for 􀁽rms with up to 500 workers became law in late March as part of the $2 trillion coronavirus economic stimulus package. It was geared to help

Black businesses with socially-driven concepts can now possibly attain some new capital from Citi. See:  https://www.blackenterprise.com/citi-launches-150-million-fund-to-support-minority-businesses-including-black-firms/

Article by Jeff McKinney in Black Enterprise describes HR 41, "the Rescue Act for Black and Community Banks . The bill–initiated in January 2019–aims to, along with other measures, bring regulatory relief for black banks from Congress, boost wealth-building for black consumers and businesses, and help save black banks from failing." See: https://www.blackenterprise.com/new-bill-black-banks-black-investors/

Please see: http://www.blackenterprise.com/business/business-news/2008/12/23/executives-working-to-create-black-owned-holding-company/