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BLK, a dating app with over 7 million downloads, was created to help Black singles find love, and now it’s providing users with financial resources to support Black-owned businesses.  Just in time for National Black Business Month in August, BLK has announced “Break the Bank,” an initiative to help Black communities deal with the rising costs of inflation Through a partnership with a Black community collective called The Gathering Spot, BLK is helping to sponsor a contest in which 40 users will receive gift cards worth $250 to fund dates at

B2B startup Vori has raised $10 million in Series A funding. The funding round was led by Silicon Valley-based venture fund, The Factory, and included participation from Greylock, E2JDJ, MKT1, and Mollie Stone’s Markets.  Vori, founded in 2019 by Brandon Hill, Robert Pinkerton, and Tremaine Kirkman, is revolutionizing the grocery industry with its B2B operating system. Vori’s platform is committed to enhancing retailers’ inventory workflows by digitizing traditionally labor-intensive processes.  Their work unlocks the data required for grocery retailers, brands, and distributors to effectively address food access and food waste

Business accelerator program, Comcast RISE, has dedicated $1 million to supporting Philadelphia BIPOC-owned businesses.  The program, which was initially launched in 2020 as a response to help small business owners of color who were impacted financially by the COVID-19 pandemic, will award more than 100 Philadelphia small businesses owned by women and people of color with $1 million in grants.  According to a press release, Comcast RISE has distributed over $16 million in grants to early-stage businesses, and $75 million in in-kind support for marketing and technology services, impacting more than 9,500

Black-owned SaaS startup, Stimulus recently closed a $2.5 million seed round. The funding round was led by Black Ops VC and included Genius Guild, Morgan Stanley, Northwestern Mutual Future Ventures, REFASHIOND Ventures, Bronze Valley, The BFM Fund, Plain Sight Capital, Penn Medicine, and a few angel investors.  Stimulus, founded in 2017 by Tiffanie Stanard, is a relationship intelligence (SaaS) platform that uses data insights and relationship-building tools to help companies make the best purchasing decisions while assisting them in optimizing, nurturing, and growing their supplier ecosystems.  The company’s mission is to help businesses

Backstage Capital, one of the first venture capital firms to pave the way for hundreds of underrepresented founders, has announced Bank of America as the latest investor in its Opportunity Fund I.  The investment firm, founded by Arlan Hamilton, has been investing in underestimated founders since 2015. As a result, the platform has one of the largest portfolios of underrepresented founders in venture capital. Their portfolio comprises 200 companies led by women, people of color, and LGBTQ+ founders.  According to a press release, Bank of America recently announced that it had

Marceau Michel, fund manager at Black Founders Matter, is no longer with the fund after being issued an offer to resign.  According to emails shared with TechCrunch, Michel was given until June 7 to resign. However, after refusing to step down, the team offered him several alternatives to further encourage his existence. Despite this, Michel refused to hand in his resignation.  The fund, first launched in 2008, announced the launch of its 25 by 25 pledge earlier this year to encourage investment firms to support BIPOC women founders. However, according to

New research by Imperial College Business School has revealed that businesses are more likely to sacrifice racial diversity on their boards when underperforming or during times of greater productivity.  The findings, published in the Organization Science journal, investigate how negative performance feedback impacts board diversity. According to the study, board members tend to perceive others with ‘similar ascriptive backgrounds’ as more trustworthy, which is why they are less inclined to welcome members with diverse backgrounds.  The study analyses the boards of over 700 US-listed manufacturing firms, which helped them understand

Black-owned digital health platform, She Matters has closed a $1.5 million pre-seed investment fund. The funding round included participation from Oxeon Ventures, Chingona Ventures, New York University, The Fund, and Techstars.  The platform, co-founded by Jade Kearney and Marguerite Pierce, is a social networking platform designed to support Black mothers who experience postpartum comorbidities. The organization provides mothers access to a community, culturally competent healthcare, and culturally relevant resources. Additionally, they train healthcare providers on culturally appropriate healthcare and help them understand Black women’s challenges.  She Matters’ original mission was

Black-owned African integrator system, Bluechip Technologies, has announced its expansion to Europe amid growing demand.  Bluechip Technologies, co-founded in 2008 by Kazeem Tewogbade and Olumide Soyombe, is a software company that works to provide business solutions and strategies to companies. The Nigeria-based organization focuses exclusively on assisting companies in planning, designing, implanting, and operating business application solutions.  The organization gathers data from multiple sources and translates it into information that can help organizations understand trends. This process also allows them to assist businesses with understanding data to make better decisions

Black Business Month is well and truly underway. To celebrate, video-sharing platform TikTok has announced it is now accepting applications for its third annual ‘Support Black Businesses’ accelerator program.  The accelerator program, launched in 2020 in the wake of the George Floyd protests, aims to help elevate the voices of Black-owned businesses on TikTok. Through the initiative, Black entrepreneurs will have exclusive access to resources, benefits, and networking opportunities.  The program will also offer entrepreneurs custom virtual training sessions across four weeks to help them accelerate their business on TikTok.

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