Pat Fischer on Economic Development

Creating A Minority Owned Bank Will Benefit The Entire City

Yesterday I was proud to join with Steve Love, president of the African-American Chamber of Commerce, and a number of business, church and civic leaders from our City to announce the formation of a task force that will explore the creation of Cincinnati’s only minority owned and controlled bank.

While the city of Cincinnati is almost 50% African-American, African-Americans control only about 4% of the businesses but contribute only about 0.4% of the net revenues to the community.

We need more jobs in Cincinnati. This effort would create jobs, increase home ownership and support the tax base in the African-American community and throughout our entire city.

Without new avenues for credit expansion, small businesses and the jobs they create will continue to be limited. The best way to increase the number of jobs, develop more businesses, grow the local economy and expand the tax base is to make sure that credit is available for small businesses, especially minority owned and controlled businesses. Many major cities, including Atlanta, Baltimore, and Chicago, have a thriving African-American business community because of the credit available from minority owned and controlled banks.

I am honored the following community leaders have joined our task force: Donna Jones Baker, President and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Cincinnati; Tony Brown, President and CEO of the Uptown Consortium; James Clingman, Owner of James Clingman and Associates; James Gudmens, Former President and CEO of Anderson Bank Company; Gail King, Partner at Keating, Meuthing & Klekamp PLL; Nathaniel Lampley, Managing Partner of the Cincinnati Office of Vorys, Sater, Seymour & Pease LLP; Steve Love, President and CEO of the Greater Cincinnati African-American Chamber of Commerce; Stephen Schrantz, Retired Executive Vice President of Commercial Banking at Fifth Third Bancorp; Rev. K.Z. Smith, Pastor of the Corinthian Baptist Church; Bishop Dwight Wilkins, President of the Cincinnati Interdenominational Ministerial Alliance.

Group to explore minority owned bank

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