Black-owned businesses can help close the racial wealth gap in the United States, a report has found. The “Gather Against the Gap” report marked a significant step towards addressing the racial wealth gap that critically impacts Black Americans. The Racial Wealth Gap The data found a $10 trillion racial wealth gap in the United States. The gap was illustrated by the median wealth of Black households at $20,000, in contrast to $180,000 for white households. This wealth disparity, coupled with an employment and income gap, significantly hinders the economic progress
MOONHUB has recently announced a significant boost to its growth and innovation efforts with an investment of €1.3 million ($1.4 million), led by Unconventional Ventures. The round, backed by Pi Labs and Ada Ventures, has raised MOONHUB’s total funding to an impressive €4.1 million ($4.5 million). MOONHUB’s Story MOONHUB is a trailblazing, interactive virtual reality (VR) training platform. Founded in 2016 by CEO Dami Hastrup and co-founders Vinh Ly and Hannah Sutcliffe, MOONHUB is pioneering in learning and development. Its platform offers CPD-accredited immersive VR learning experiences featuring its patented Spot and Jot technology. This approach has seen the
Tiana Tukes, a prominent co-founder of LGBT+ VC, has recently announced her departure from the organization. Her decision is a significant moment in her career, marked by groundbreaking achievements and unwavering commitment to advancing LGBTQ prosperity through venture capital. Tukes’ Journey With LGBT+ VC Two years ago, Tukes embarked on a journey to establish LGBT+ VC. The non-profit organization focuses on supporting the LGBTQ community in the venture capital sector. Her initiative began as a simple idea for a private dinner for openly LGBTQ investors, a concept she initially felt
Lucy Guo, a self-made millionaire and co-founder of the $7 billion-valued unicorn Scale AI, is making headlines again with her platform Passes, according to Fortune. Lucy Guo And Passes At 29, Guo has secured $40 million in Series A funding for her new venture, Passes, a creator monetization platform. Passes, previously used by Black Chyna, aims to revolutionize how content creators earn money. The $40 million round was led by the San Francisco-based Bond, spearheaded by Kleiner Perkins alums Mary Meeker and Mood Rowghani. Skims co-founders Emma and Jens Grede
UK-based Black woman-founded digital health startup SökerData, has been awarded a share of a £6.2 million ($7.8 million) grant from Innovate UK. SökerData Research has found that people of European genetic ancestry represent a disproportionate 80% of participants in genome-wide association studies (GWAS). By contrast, only 2% of participants have African genetic ancestry. This imbalance has profound implications, especially in diseases like breast cancer, where outcomes vary significantly across ethnicities. SökerData’s project focuses on building a diverse biomarker database, a critical resource in the realm of medical research. Biomarkers are
Tech entrepreneur Andre Swanston has become Connecticut’s first Black majority owner of a professional sports team. Meet Andre Swanston Swanston’s path to this milestone is a testament to his relentless work ethic, instilled by his father, an immigrant from St. Kitts and Nevis. Swanston ventured into the financial sector after obtaining a finance degree from La Salle University and a business degree from the University of Connecticut. He held positions at companies such as Ameriprise Financial and JPMorgan Chase & Co. However, his ambitions extended beyond the financial world. During the
Five Black entrepreneurs are behind “The Xchange,” a $40 million high-rise development project in Chicago’s South Shore neighborhood. The project aims to put the community first, with plans to offer competitive rent and integrate architecture, development, and entrepreneurship programs to benefit local youth. Meet The Team Jemal King, known as the “9-to-5 millionaire,” anchors the group with a tale of resilience and ambition. Despite his NFL dreams, King found his calling in real estate while serving as a police officer, a decision that led to significant success. His determination and
Black Tech Nation Ventures (BTN.vc), a venture firm based in Pittsburgh, has announced the final close of a $50 million inaugural fund. BTN.vc This fund specifically targets software startups led by founders from traditionally underrepresented backgrounds, including Black, Latinx, Indigenous, female, and LGBTQ+ entrepreneurs. BTN.vc’s founding in 2020 resulted from a collaboration between three serial entrepreneurs, Kelauni Jasmyn, David Motley, and Seán Sebastian. The focus addresses the long-standing issue of inequity in funding and anticipates significant returns within the venture industry. “We set up BTN.vc to equip and train a
Recent data from Crunchbase reveals that there has been a disproportionate decline in venture funding for Black-founded startups in the United States. A Fall Below The $1B Threshold Last year, these startups secured only $705 million in funding, marking the first time since 2016 that the figure fell below the $1 billion threshold. This sharp decline of 71% in funding to Black-founded companies starkly contrasts with the 37% decrease in overall U.S. startup funding, highlighting a widening gap in investment allocation. This drop signifies a declining share of Black-founded startups
In Baltimore, a new social shopping platform, Xclusit, is transforming consumers’ engagement with Black-owned businesses. Vincent Johnson’s Journey Vincent Johnson, an Ellicott City-based entrepreneur and the CEO of Xclusit, crafted the platform to empower Black businesses. Johnson, a Vanderbilt University graduate with a master’s in divinity, initially focused on Black economics. His passion for entrepreneurship led him away from pursuing a PhD, instead dedicating himself to developing tech solutions that support Black-owned businesses. His journey in the tech world began with his first app, Coupify. Still, through direct engagement with
