Ifill — who is Black — watched businesses in her Brooklyn community struggle to stay afloat, their frustrations with traditional banks front and center.
In January, she launched Guava, an online banking platform aimed specifically at Black small-business owners.
For context, Mercury — another online bank for startups — topped 100,000 customers in three years, according to TechCrunch.
Many large banks boast millions of small-business customers each.
"Especially for Black people [and] especially for immigrants in this country."
Persons:
Kelly Ifill, Ifill —, Black, Ifill
Organizations:
CNBC, TechCrunch
Locations:
Brooklyn , New York, Brooklyn