Grameen America Hosts Third Annual Stakeholder Event
80+ funders, investors, and lenders joined Grameen America’s virtual stakeholder event on Wednesday, March 22, 2023, to partner on driving impact for low-income women entrepreneurs in financially underserved communities
Grameen America, the fastest-growing nonprofit microfinance organization in the United States, convened more than 80 community partners and supporters online with special guest Professor Muhammad Yunus, Co-Chair of Grameen America and Founder of Grameen Bank. Together, Grameen America and its stakeholders mobilized to leverage capital, research, and expertise to advance financial inclusion for women entrepreneurs of color.
Professor Muhammad Yunus founded the Grameen Bank in Bangladesh, pioneering the concept of providing small loans to women entrepreneurs living in poverty. In 2008, Professor Yunus brought the revolutionary microfinance program to the United States. Grameen America provides access to affordable loan capital, credit- and asset-building, and business training built around a proven group-lending model. Since 2008, Grameen America has disbursed over $3 billion to more than 167,000 women entrepreneurs across 25 U.S. cities.
The stakeholder event spotlighted a conversation between Professor Yunus and Andrea Jung, President and CEO of Grameen America, on the future of microfinance and technology innovations for low-income women entrepreneurs. The event also featured a panel discussion with Grameen America leadership on upcoming strategic initiatives.
Key achievements and announcements at the event included:
$3 billion in affordable business capital invested: At the start of 2023, Grameen America reached a record milestone of investing $3 billion in affordable business capital to women of color. The organization marked $1 billion invested in women entrepreneurs in 2018, $2 billion disbursed in 2021, and just a year and a half later, $3 billion. This record progress is a testament to Grameen America’s legacy as the fastest-growing microfinance organization in the U.S.
Geographic expansion: Grameen America plans to build the organization’s national footprint in Riverside, CA, Phoenix, AZ, and Queens, NY in 2023.
A bold 10-year vision: Grameen America is accelerating its bold vision for the future to empower 580,000 women entrepreneurs with $20 billion in life-changing business capital across 50 U.S. cities in the next 10 years.
First-of-its-kind pilot national Savings Program: To support long-term asset-building, generational wealth, and positive money-saving habits, Grameen America is launching an innovative savings solution tailored to the specific needs of the low-income entrepreneurs it serves.
New mobile application for members: Grameen America has created a mobile application for its members to take more action of their loan information, tools, and trainings on their own time while automating several branch responsibilities to allow Grameen America staff to prioritize relationship building.
Connecting with Black businesswomen: In 2022, Grameen America’s Elevate initiative opened in Atlanta, GA to bring affordable business capital to Black entrepreneurs in the community and by 2030, aims to invest $1.3 billion in more than 80,000 Black women businessowners.
Ambitious campaign to improve access to quality, affordable healthcare and education: The Grameen Promotoras program launched the $16 million Healthier Together Campaign to scale the program to more than 57,000 women in 15 locations over the next five years.
At the event, Grameen America previewed the release of its 2022 annual report: “Women are Limitless,” which features reflections on 2022, a letter from the organization’s National Ambassador Jennifer Lopez, member stories, and programmatic accomplishments and updates.