“A Big Solution for Our Unbanked Urban Communities”
7.1 million U.S. households were unbanked in 2021. 64% were of Black and Latin ethnicity. Unbanked refers to individuals who don’t have access to banks or credit unions. They rely on cash, check-cashing centers, prepaid cards, money orders, payday lending, pawn shop loans, and title loans to receive income, make purchases, and pay bills. It adds time and expenses to their everyday lives. Urban households avoid financial institutions because of their lack of trust, desire for more privacy, inability to meet minimum balance requirements in their accounts, high account fees, or unpredictable fees. Another concern about the unbanked household is creating data that helps establish creditworthiness. Those urban households do not have access to the credit needed to get loans for their own needs, furthering their education or future business aspirations. The unbanked urban households struggle to achieve full financial inclusion and economic opportunity. It is a repeating cycle for their families. How can we help our urban communities? It is time to provide them with the knowledge they need to succeed.
One solution is to educate and empower urban households by teaching them about cryptocurrency and decentralized finance. Many people believe crypto is the future for the unbanked in urban communities. Cryptocurrency provides urban households the same opportunities to contribute to and earn profits. Those households have felt left out because their local financial institutions would not benefit them if they could. It is time to educate those households on the advantages of decentralized finance compared to traditional banks and credit unions. Decentralized finance is a financial technology based on secure distributed ledgers similar to those used by cryptocurrencies. That makes them open to anyone rather than going through a bank. Households can hold their money in secure digital wallets (cold storage) instead of keeping them in banks. Decentralized finance eliminates the high fees imposed by banks in exchange for their services. Households with internet access can use it without securing approval from a bank, company, or organization. The funds can transfer in a matter of seconds. Urban households would have easier access to cheaper credit, easy lending, and borrowing activities.
Ultimately the goal is to achieve full financial inclusion and economic opportunity for our urban communities and beyond. Please follow HarlemCryptoDao on Instagram, Twitter, and Linkedin for more information on attending our next meeting. Sandra Buttry
