80
HISPANIC NETWORK MAGAZINE www.hnmagazine.com
B2B SUPPLIER DIVERSITY
G
lobal icon Jennifer Lopez and Grameen America, the nations fastest-growing microfinance organization, announce they are partnering to advance financial empowerment for Latina businesswomen historically excluded from the financial main- stream. Grameen America provides access to business capital, credit- and asset-building, inancial education and peer support to enable women living below the federal poverty level to boost their income and create jobs in their communities. The new partnership seeks to advance both Lopezs latest philanthropic project, Limitless Labs, which aims to sup- port Latina-owned small businesses, as well as Grameen Americas goal to empower 600,000 Latina entrepreneurs across 50 U.S. cities with $14 billion in life-changing busi- ness capital and six million hours of financial education and training by 2030. Lopez joins as Grameen Americas National Ambassador to advocate for and mentor the organizations network of over 150,000 small businesses run by women in predominantly Latinx communities across the United States. Limitless Labs, the home for all of Lopezs philanthropic and values-driven work, aims to uplift, educate and provide essential resources to underserved communities like the one in The Bronx where Lopez grew up. Additional areas of focus include youth empowerment, civic engagement and empowering women with the confidence to live limitlessly. Grameen America envisions an inclusive society in which all entrepreneurs, regard- less of gender, race or income, have access to fair and affordable financial services to sup- port upward economic mobility. The organi- zation provides ongoing financial education to members and reports microloan repay- ments to credit bureaus to enable partici- pants to build their financial identities. Since its founding in 2008, Grameen America has served over 150,000 women in 23 U.S. cities, distributed $2.6 billion in loans and helped create and maintain 157,000 jobs. The orga- nizations repayment rate is over 99 percent, and its members have achieved an average credit score of 644 through participation in the program. To kick off her role as National Ambassador, Lopez will motivate, promote and inspire Latina businesswomen, helping them under-
Jennifer Lopez & Partners Pledge $14 Billion in Capital to Latina Entrepreneurs
PHILLIP FARAONE/GETTY IMAGES
Jennifer Lopez attends the 2020 Film Independent Spirit Awards in Santa Monica, Calif.
Previous Page