A generation of Black financial enthusiasts is emerging. Currently, 44 percent of cryptocurrency traders and 35 percent of stock market investors are people of color. Building Black wealth is an ongoing effort with a long history, but many Black Americans are trying to weigh which investments will foster monetary growth and security.
Black Americans invest more in cryptocurrency than other groups in financial products according to Time. Forty-four percent of traders who own crypto are people of color, according to a June survey by the University of Chicago’s National Opinion Research Center. In April, a Harris Poll reported that while just 16 percent of U.S. adults overall own cryptocurrency, 18 percent of Black Americans have invested in crypto. Trading crypto is more popular with women of color (41 percent) and Black Americans under 40 without a college degree (55 percent), according to a NORC at the University of Chicago report.
In 2019, the Federal Reserve Survey of Consumer Finances reported that the U.S. median white family’s wealth is over $180,000, eight times more than the median Black family wealth of $25,000. If left unaddressed, it is estimated that the median Black household could have zero wealth by 2053.
To prevent this, Black-led organizations and other companies are implementing cryptocurrency education and access.
Black Wall Street, a digital wallet and crypto trading service, provides a secure place for Black Americans to save, spend and invest their money. The app teaches beginners about cryptocurrency with videos on financial literacy. The company also ensures consumers learn and obtain the smallest Bitcoin dimension, a Satoshi. One hundred thousand satoshis make up 1 Bitcoin. Black Wall Street user, Brianna Garner, enjoys using the app because there is a more significant focus on investing in satoshi coins to invest in Bitcoin easily.
Greenwood, a Black-led digital banking company is also providing Black and Latinx communities opportunities to financially grow. By creating an account, users can invest in communities by bringing five meals to a family through Goodr. The company also supplies community reinvestments, global ATM networks and no hidden fees.
Bitcoin extensions in mobile banking apps like Cash Apps have made investing in cryptocurrency more accessible. Companies like Wholefoods, Starbucks and Etsy are increasing cryptocurrency adoption by allowing it as a payment option.
Although Black investors are actively using cryptocurrency, they are missing out on other wealth-enriching alternatives.
Wealthier Black households are much less likely to own stocks than their white counterparts, according to an Associated Press report. Black households stand to lose 260 percent of stock returns for S&P 500 funds over the last decade.
The report found the pandemic and U.S. history of economic stagnation have caused wealthy Black families to invest in secure investments.
“Black families are shortchanging their investment options by choosing secure opportunities that yield less return,” Tatjana Meschede, associate director at Brandeis University’s Institute on Assets and Social Policy, told the Associated Press.
The largest bond fund has returned less than 40 percent over the last decade, which was far below the nearly 257 percent that the largest stock fund has delivered over the same time.
Less exposure and education about stocks growing up is another reason it is difficult for Black investors to try stocks, the AP report explained. Bob Marshall, a banking executive in northern Virginia and stocks investor, is working to provide wealth for his children and grandchildren. Marshall, who is Black, did not receive stock market training as a child but started investing in stocks in college.
Young Black investors are increasingly interested in stocks as well, according to a Marketplace report. Thirty percent of Black investors under 40 got into the market for the first time last year. Almost 40 percent of Black Americans say they talk about the stock market now versus just 10 percent who did growing up.
More Black investors are opening their horizons to increase wealth for themselves and future generations. Regular finance discussions and early investment exposure will better prepare investors for any monetary venture.
