PayPal is extending additional support to Black-owned businesses by way of a $5 million grant that builds on the $10 million PayPal Empowerment Grant program launched in June.
“When we made our initial commitment, we understood that decisive action was needed to make progress toward economic equality and closing the racial wealth gap that has persisted for far too long in this country,” Dan Schulman, president and CEO of PayPal, said in a press release on Friday (Dec. 18).
He added that the COVID-19 pandemic decimated many Black-owned businesses, and that PayPal aims to help “increase their opportunity to survive and thrive.”
A recent Goldman Sachs study indicated that about 40 percent of Black-owned small business owners who received Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) loans have been forced to reduce wages or cut staff, PayPal said.
PayPal has previously awarded $10 million in grants to the Association for Enterprise Opportunity (AEO), which in turn offered direct financial support to 1,167 Black-owned businesses nationwide. Those businesses will also have a chance to apply for additional grants, as well some 250 additional Black-owned firms that qualified for aid.
“Small businesses continue to face extreme hardship and uncertainty during this time, and PayPal is doubling down on its support for those businesses that are most vulnerable,” said Connie Evans, president and CEO of AEO.
PayPal and AEO have also collaborated with Deloitte, Facebook, Guidehouse, Mastercard and Qualtrics to extend webinars, coaching and network benefits to award recipients.
The Silicon Valley company has also invested $50 million in the Local Initiatives Support Corporation (LISC) Black Economic Development Fund. In addition, PayPal awarded $5 million in grants to 20 nonprofit community partners and extended $50 million to Black-owned Optus Bank. The company is also investing $50 million in eight early stage Black and Latinx-led venture-capital funds.
The various programs are part of PayPal’s $530 million commitment to support and strengthen Black-owned businesses and minority communities.
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