Minority-owned banks are turning to new core technology to better serve their customers. This month, Black-owned First Independence Bank and Native American-owned Native American Bank announced tech upgrades through core providers Finastra and Jack Henry, respectively. 

“There’s been a lack of technology agility, in particular in community banks, and we see that technology really is the path of the future,” said Kenneth Kelly, CEO of the Detroit-based First Independence Bank. “We had to go to a more digital platform to stay and remain competitive going forward.”

In a year filled with protests against systemic racism and police brutality, minority-owned community banks remain a lifeline to financial inclusion in marginalized communities. By upgrading their technology, these banks aim to attract new customers through improved user experience.   

First Independence opened in 1970 and has about $280 million in assets and three branches; the certified Community Development Financial Institution has a higher percentage of low- and moderate-income customers than most banks, according to Kelly.  He added that 20% African Americans in Detroit don’t have a bank account. 

With Finastra’s Fusion Phoenix Core and digital banking solutions, First Independence wants to create faster, more seamless online experiences by simplifying the lives of its employees. Although customers can currently open an account with First Independence online, the Finastra integration eliminates manual back-office processes. Kelly said the integration will allow the bank to partner with third-party fintechs more easily. Targeted to go live in April 2021, the Finastra integration also includes a CRM upgrade that allows bank employees to see customers’ history at all First Independence’s branches. 

“That will allow us to basically have a more personal relationship with our customers and be able to keep up with things such as requests,” Kelly said. “The customer remains at the center of all those interactions.”

Denver-based Native American Bank, meanwhile, is looking to more easily reach new customers through its upgrades with Jack Henry. Although customers were formerly able to open accounts online, they had to wait for a bank employee to look over their application. With Jack Henry OpenAnywhere, customers can remotely open a new account 24/7, a convenience for this bank’s customers, who are often spread out in remote areas. 

The bank, also a certified CDFI, has about $200 million in assets, according to president and CEO Thomas Ogaard. Native American Bank has one branch in Denver and another in Browning, Mont., on the Blackfeet Reservation, but serves customers throughout the country. The bank does about 95% of its business in Native American communities, Ogaard said.

In addition to its digital banking capabilities, Native American Bank is changing the way employees interact with customers. The bank moved into a new building in August and set up a technology bar with Microsoft Surface Pro tablets so customers can self-serve. Employees will have access to Jack Henry Branch Anywhere, allowing for access to customers’ entire bank relationship,  regardless of location. These new features should go live early next year, Ogaard said. 

“OpenAnywhere and Branch Anywhere are really going to be a game changer for us in terms of the level of service that we provide and the access to financial products and services to the client base that we’re looking to serve,” Ogaard said.

See also: Fintechs rally for social justice online, but what is being done offline?

As consumers look for new ways to fight systemic racism with their dollars, digital banking startups are answering the call as well. Last week, rapper and activist Michael Render (a.k.a. Killer Mike) launched Greenwood, a neobank, along with former Atlanta Mayor Andrew Young and Bounce TV founder Ryan Glover. The neobank is “a mobile banking experience made for Black and Latinx customers,” according to its website, and customers can support the UNCF and NAACP with spare change roundups.  

“If you’re looking for innovative ways beyond the ballot box to be an ally, listen to the wisdom of Killer Mike: Bank small and, if you can, bank Black,” Katherine Waldock, an economist and a fellow at the Millstein  Center at Columbia Law, wrote in the New York Times last month.

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