It has never been easier to open a bank account, especially with the spread of online services, but there has also never been so much choice about where to put your money. If you’re overwhelmed by your banking options, think about your ability to shape social change with your money. Now is a great time to consider becoming a customer at a socially responsible bank.
WHAT IS A SOCIALLY RESPONSIBLE BANK?
Corporate social responsibility is the self-regulation that businesses do to help promote a positive impact on environmental or social issues, such as racial equity.
In the banking industry, social responsibility refers to the ways banks can reduce harm or create opportunities for good. For an eco-conscious bank or credit union, that might mean it doesn’t invest in oil pipelines, deforestation or fossil fuels, or it might invest in alternative energy, plant trees or buy carbon offsets. Other banks or credit unions might be committed to equity goals by providing financial literacy programs to their communities or by giving more loans to minority-owned small businesses.
WHY DOES IT MATTER WHERE I PUT MY MONEY?
It’s easy to imagine that the money you keep in your savings account, checking account or certificate of deposit is just waiting for you to use it. But your bank or credit union is using your money behind the scenes to lend to or invest in businesses or other customers. So even if you aren’t directly giving money to an oil refinery or company that’s clearing the Amazon rainforest, your money could still be supporting those initiatives.
There has been a long history of discrimination in the U.S. banking system against people of color, and you can put your money with a bank or credit union that’s working to support these marginalized groups. Elizabeth Vivirito, a financial services consultant who specializes in diversity, equity and inclusion, or DEI, research , says she has observed more robust changes in the banking industry around racial equity since the murder of Black man George Floyd by a Minneapolis police officer in May 2020.
“We see more people caring about where their money goes and what it’s funding,” Vivirito says.
HOW DO I KNOW WHAT MY BANK IS INVESTING IN?
It can be hard to know what a bank is doing with your money, but there are some ways to tell.
First, look at the bank’s website. Does it make any statements about its DEI goals? Does it explicitly say whether it invests in certain industries? Has the bank gone through any third-party certification processes, such as becoming a certified B Corp or joining 1% for the Planet or the Global Alliance for Banking on Values? These certifications and memberships each have goals and member requirements around sustainability and equity.