A financial institution for African immigrants and African Americans opened Monday in St. Ann to help Black St. Louisans and African communities build wealth, strengthen their families and create opportunities.
The African Diaspora Federal Credit Union was established by the African Diaspora Council Inc., a local cultural organization. The credit union will allow its members to pool their resources and personalize the financial services they receive from the institution.
This credit union is important for Black and African communities, because many do not trust larger financial institutions due to their deeply rooted history of systemic racism, said Michael Anani, CEO of African Diaspora Federal Credit Union.
“They don't feel comfortable going to them [banks] anymore and explaining to them what their problem is, and that's why we have a lot of people in our community who don't bank anymore,” he said. “They have their money under the mattress, or whatever way they want to save it … so this might be different. We understand each other's needs.”
Although credit union members will be able to tailor their experience to their needs, board members say it will offer financial literacy programs for children and adults. It will also provide low-interest loans for education and businesses. For now, the African Diaspora Federal Credit Union will offer its members basic savings and lending services, including personal and auto loans, share accounts and share draft accounts. The National Credit Union Administration chartered the credit union in May.
Anani came up with the idea for the credit union 19 years ago. He was studying poverty in communities of color and pondered the idea of creating financial institutions to help get African immigrants and African Americans out of poverty. He started researching the poverty levels in different states and how they are plaguing their communities.
“The credit union is the place where people come together, put their resources together, put their pennies together, and make investments for themselves,” he said. “It's a trust issue and lack of capital that's where poverty exists in our community … but our community is huge, so we try to solve the trust issue first by bringing our community together.”
The federal credit union will also be a resource for non-English-speaking Africans. The credit union employees are versed in over 20 major African languages, which board member Rayo Animashaun said makes the credit union relatable and stands out from any other financial institution in Missouri.
“We all have been there, so we have identified those needs, helping new immigrants to integrate, teaching them the system, how the system works,” Animashaun said. “This credit union will support all those programs to help the immigrants thrive in the diaspora.”
Board members say if the credit union comes across a language or dialect that is unfamiliar to employees, they will reach out to various African associations in the community with people from Cameroon, Congo, Togo, Senegal, Burundi and other African countries who can interpret for immigrant members.
Kenyan native Anthony Kamnao has been supporting the African Diaspora Council Inc. for years. He moved to St. Louis nearly 17 years ago. He is excited to see the financial institution come to fruition, because he has been wanting to put his money and investments in a bank owned by people who look like him.
“I'm so excited about what is happening here in America, especially in St Louis, just changing the perspective,” Kamnao said. “The Jewish community is together. The Chinese are together. They have their businesses, but for us to come together as an African community is amazing.”
He said the credit union could potentially help him get a loan to develop the plot of land he owns in the Lake of Ozarks. The musician and entrepreneur also has other business ventures that he needs funding for.
“They can support my music. I also have a nonprofit. … I'm looking at working with them to enhance productivity and also get funds for that,” he said.
Marie Vail believes in supporting Black-owned businesses. The Florissant resident said she filled out membership paperwork on Monday because she did not want to miss out on the opportunity to start building her own wealth through a Black-owned financial institution. She is looking forward to refinancing her home loan through the bank and getting assistance with repairing her credit.
Board Chairperson Charles Bryson said there are many benefits for African and Black Americans to gain from being a member of a credit union. He said what makes the African Diaspora Federal Credit Union different from other nationally recognized credit unions is that its employees are culturally competent.
“This is home for us and now you can see them talk about it (the credit union) in the community … they may say, ‘You know what, let me take my money out of the bank where I don't get those services, I don't get those resources, and let me take it into a place that knows and understands who we are as people, and maybe can help us a little better,’” Bryson said.
