JPMorgan Chase Commits $3 Million to Accelerate The Columbus Urban League & women entrepreneurs across Central Ohio

Read the full release below, in addition to the following coverage:

— Columbus Business First
— The Columbus Dispatch
— Spectrum News 1

COLUMBUS (OH) — JPMorgan Chase is investing $3 million over the next three years to The Columbus Urban League (CUL), as part of an annual competition to source innovative and sustainable ideas to advance equity in the United States.

Leaders from Central Ohio joined JPMorgan Chase today at CUL’s Venture Suite to announce the investment, which will, in turn, launch CUL’s new Accelerate Her initiative.

“The Accelerate Her initiative and the multi-year, multi-million-dollar investment by our partners at JPMorgan Chase will have a rippling and residual impact on the economic empowerment of Black women and a tremendous economic impact on the community as a whole,” said CUL President & CEO Stephanie Hightower.

Among other things, the Accelerate Her initiative will provide education and support, access to capital and contracting opportunities for 100 women entrepreneurs and business owners to help them scale up and grow.

“The expertise, perspectives and lived experiences of women of color uniquely position them to drive solutions that expand economic opportunity in their communities,” said Corinne Burger, Columbus location leader at JPMorgan Chase. “We at JPMorgan Chase are thrilled to partner with the Columbus Urban League in their ongoing work to lift up Black female entrepreneurs and their businesses here in Columbus.”

JPMorgan Chase began the Annual Challenge, formerly known as the AdvancingCities Challenge, in 2018, evolving the concept in 2021 in response to the disproportionate impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on women of color.

“The partners involved in this work share in the vision for achieving greater economic prosperity in our region and know we all must work to address challenges through innovative and impactful programming,” said Kenny McDonald, president & CEO of the Columbus Partnership.

About the organizations:

The 105-year-old Columbus Urban League (CUL) is an advocate and resource for Black and urban communities that is dedicated to growing wealth, education, earning power and small businesses while also supporting strong families. Driven to advance racial equity and social justice, CUL has distinguished itself as an effective organization in numerous ways, including as one of only ten organizations to be selected for funding by One Million Black Women and by earning ranking as one of the top five percent of all 93 National Urban League affiliates. For more information, visit cul.org.

JPMorgan Chase & Co. (NYSE: JPM) is a leading financial services firm based in the United States of America (“U.S.”), with operations worldwide. JPMorgan Chase had $3.7 trillion in assets and $292 billion in stockholders’ equity as of December 31, 2022. The Firm is a leader in investment banking, financial services for consumers and small businesses, commercial banking, financial transaction processing and asset management. Under the J.P. Morgan and Chase brands, the Firm serves millions of customers in the U.S., and many of the world’s most prominent corporate, institutional and government clients globally. Information about JPMorgan Chase & Co. is available at jpmorganchase.com.