Banks we deserve

Banks we deserve Reclaiming community banking for a just economy

Oscar Perry Abello

Book - 2025

"We've never done anything big in this country without little banks. Yet the number of community banks in the US has been steadily declining for decades, giving way to big banks that have little connection to the communities they claim to serve. The massive, unprecedented shift toward such a highly concentrated banking sector has weakened our ability to take action at a community level and leaves many people, especially those who have been historically marginalized, without access to capital. In The Banks We Deserve, journalist Oscar Perry Abello argues that community banking has a crucial role to play in addressing urgent social challenges, from creating a more racially just economy to preparing for a changing climate. At their b...est, community banks unleash the agency and aspirations of the communities that establish them. Abello challenges people working on racial justice, community development, or addressing climate change to start more community banks or credit unions as part of their work, while also calling for policies and regulatory reforms that will help tilt the landscape back in favor of community banking. The Banks We Deserve tells the stories of new community banks - like Adelphi Bank, in Columbus, Ohio, the first new Black bank in 20 years; or Walden Mutual Bank in Concord, New Hampshire, the first new mutual bank since 1973 and the first chartered specifically to finance a more sustainable food system; or Climate First Bank, in St. Petersburg, Florida, which has grown exponentially since opening for business in 2021. He hopes these stories inspire others to take some of these same daunting-but-not-impossible steps. For a community or industry that is being ignored by big banks, the idea of starting up a new bank or credit union rarely figures as an option. In The Banks We Deserve, Abello shows advocates, organizers, and innovators that it can be done, that it is being done, and describes a path to support more community banks and credit unions"--

Saved in:
Place a Hold Save to List Email this

2nd Floor New Shelf Show me where

332.1/Abello
0 / 1 copies available
Location Call Number   Status
2nd Floor New Shelf 332.1/Abello (NEW SHELF) Due Sep 16, 2025
Subjects
Community banks > United States > History.
Banks and banking > United States.
Banques communautaires > États-Unis > Histoire.
Banques > États-Unis.
Published
Washington, DC : Island Press [2025]
Language
English
Main Author
Oscar Perry Abello (author)
Physical Description
xxiii, 127 pages ; 23 cm
Bibliography
Includes bibliographical references (pages 105-116) and index.
ISBN
9781642833409
  • Introduction
  • Chapter 1. For Us, by Us: Minority-Owned Community Banks and Credit Unions
  • Chapter 2. The Blueprint: Filling in the Gap with Intention
  • Chapter 3. The Greenprint: Finding Community in Values
  • Chapter 4. New Community Banks and Credit Unions in Communities of Color
  • Chapter 5. New Banks and Credit Unions for the Environment
  • Chapter 6. Tilting the Landscape Back Where We Need It
  • Conclusion
  • Notes
  • Acknowledgments
  • Index
  • About the Author
Review by Choice Review

In Banks We Deserve, Abello (journalist) aims to evaluate community banks. With new technology and nationwide bank branching, the number of community banks has fallen since the 1980s. Abello acknowledges the economies of scale of the Big Four (Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Chase, and Citi). Community banks effectively evaluate small business credit needs but face challenges in raising equity capital to start and meet growth requirements. By 2023, community banks had the same value in local real estate loans as the Big Four banks and twice the value in small business loans. Citing median household wealth, Abello expresses concern for economic justice, particularly in marginalized banking service communities. This is the only explanation of justice offered. Alternatives include credit unions and mutual savings banks supported by community development financial institutions and other grant sources. The challenge is meeting capital requirements when no return is anticipated. Organizers and employees need personal commitment to provide marginalized communities with cost-effective financial services. It is sensationally stated that the wealth of underserved communities has been "stolen," thus requiring redistribution. Another option is for public financial institutions to hold public funds to be lent locally. Overall, this book offers insights into community banking. Summing Up: Recommended. Advanced undergraduates through faculty. --Edward C. Erickson, California State University, Stanislaus

Copyright American Library Association, used with permission.
Review by Booklist Review

This slim volume by the senior economic correspondent for Next City punches way above its weight in examining the chasm between the financial needs of underserved and often nonwhite urban communities--with special focus on local development and environmental sustainability--and a banking infrastructure often unable or outright unwilling to help them. He cites New York City, where a Hispanic population of 2.4 million has just one minority depository institution, as does a Black population of 1.9 million. Such alternative institutions, from mutual and public banks to credit unions, possess the "soft information" essential to discerning acute community needs and the businesses best suited to address them, yet their share of assets overall in the banking industry has dropped from 39 percent in 1984 to just 11.31 percent today. Deep diving into federal and state legislation passed to address that disparity, Abello shares the stories of several entrepreneurs who've successfully navigated the system to meet street-level needs in their towns. A how-to guide that raises awareness of both underserved population needs and the institutions available--or not--to serve them.

From Booklist, Copyright (c) American Library Association. Used with permission.
Review by Library Journal Review

Journalist Abello's (senior economic justice correspondent, Next City) book expresses concern about the state of the U.S. banking industry. He demonstrates not only that there has been a significant decrease in the number of community banks and credit unions in the U.S. over the years, but also that relatively few of them provide many loans to people of color or to those with lower economic means. Abello argues that the number of these types of banks must increase, especially since they were developed to help the people and businesses in their direct surroundings. The book tells the stories of a number of community banks and credit unions. For example, there's Adelphi Bank in Columbus, OH, which opened in 2023, making it the first new Black-owned bank in the U.S. since 2003. Adelphi Bank demonstrates how it has prioritized developing underserved Black communities with efforts such as awarding loans to a number of developers building affordable housing in that area. VERDICT A fresh take on banking that will show readers how credit unions and community banks can improve the social, economic, and environmental situations of the people they serve.--Shmuel Ben-Gad

(c) Copyright Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.

Similar Items