Killer Mike launches Greenwood digital bank for Black and Latinx people

Greenwood is a digital banking service set up by Killer Mike and co, and its name is inspired by the Greenwood neighborhood in Tulsa, Oklahoma, which was often called 'Black Wall Street', and was regarded as one of the most prosperous Black communities in the US in the early 1900s.

According to Complex, Killer Mike said, "Today, a dollar circulates for 20 days in the white community but only six hours in the Black community. Moreover, a Black person is twice as likely as a white person to be denied a mortgage. This lack of fairness in the financial system is why we created Greenwood."

Bounce TV's Ryan Glover added, "It’s no secret that traditional banks have failed the Black and Latinx community. We needed to create a new financial platform that understands our history and our needs going forward, a banking platform built by us and for us, a platform that helps us build a stronger future for our communities. This is our time to take back control of our lives and our financial future."

The bank will provide savings and spending accounts, and those that apply for an account before the end of 2020 will receive a black metal debit card. Greenwood is compatible with mobile pay features on Apple, Samsung and Android.

Each new customer that joins Greenwood will also allow the digital bank to provide five free meals to a family, and each transaction made with a Greenwood debit card will have the option to round up to the nearest dollar, with the extra money being donated to the UNCF, Goodr and the NAACP.

CNN reports that within the first 24 hours of launching Greenwood, the bank had tens of thousands of applications. Glover told CNN last Friday (9 October), "I will say we're in the tens of thousands. That number is increasing by the day."