Hidden Gems: Meet Obsidian Banking

Today we’d like to introduce you to Obsidian Banking. Them and their team share their story with us below:

Obsidian was bred out of the lack of equity in banking for Black people. Our co-founders, Damon Kirk-Gregory and Steven Farrar were both born and raised on the west side of Detroit in two of the city’s toughest neighborhoods (Joy Rd. and 12th Street). Steven has been committed to progress and socioeconomic equity in all of his work. He founded Linking Literature in 2015 as a broke college student, and since the organization has put nearly 15,000 books directly into the hands of inner city youth. Their online writing platform has gained a viewership of over 14,000 in over 130 countries and through partnerships have been able to establish programs that have had a hands-on impact with youth in Detroit. Steven has fought on the front lines for literacy in Detroit as a community organizer and is excited to be making a shift to financial literacy as CFO and co-Founder of Obsidian.

Damon is an Air Force veteran, divorced father of two beautiful children, Aiden 6 and Aspen 5. Damon attended the University of Michigan: Dearborn and Harvard: Extension School studying Statistics after separating from the military. In the Air Force, Damon was a Public Health Tech supporting deployments for the now Schriever Space Force Base. Damon was also the Vice President of the Schriever Airman’s Council representing the entire junior enlisted. Damon is a member of the Harvard Blockchain Club and was present in Atlanta for the protest of the unjust and racist killing of Ahmaud Arbery, and was seen in a viral picture of the protest at the CNN Tower.

Obsidian is a fintech bank offering modern traditional banking and investment services targeted towards Black millennials. Their goal is to increase financial accessibility for their people and decrease the racial wealth gap. They believe it starts with access and resources. With 42% of African-American households being unbanked or underbanked, Obsidian plans to go-to-door in Black neighborhoods promoting financial literacy and the access that their services will offer. Their goal is to reach 1 million Black households, starting with Detroit, Atlanta, and Houston. African-Americans have long been misrepresented and mistreated in the financial sector. It’s time for a change.

Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
Early on in our start-up, we were told by veteran of the financial industry that you have to be careful of friend or foe. We’ve come across some of both; there has been times where the person meeting us questions if we understand our product or our platform.

In the two years, we’ve been doing this, we’ve taken a meeting with a Black person. We’ve seen never a black person represented in Senior Management in any of these companies, you hardly see us represented in any position.

Fintech can be the time America got it right with banking, it’s an emerging frontier that’s being developed under all of our noses. Obsidian wants to have a seat at that table because we were left out when JP Morgan, Chase, and Bank of America had first that talk.

An industry leader and a supplier of information we can’t avoid told us on a call that they primarily market to white wealthy men, and that spoke volumes.

Great, so let’s talk business. Can you tell our readers more about what you do and what you think sets you apart from others?
Obsidian is committed to providing a platform for their people. Traditional banks have chosen to ignore the needs of the Black community, specifically, and cater to outside audience. Obsidian is different. We are from the culture and for the culture and will never mistreat our people.

We’ve also partnered with industry leaders and peers to be able to offer all of the following secure options to Black and veteran millennials:

Banking: early direct deposits, reward debit cards, and ATM fee rebate.

Investing: Stock Trading with options, margin, and the ability to track congressional investing. Crypto Trading with high liquidity and margin.

Passive Investing: Round-Up the loose change from your daily transactions as an individual or as an entire family into assets.

Buy Now Pay Later: We will allow black businesses and customers the opportunity to circulate wealth using today’s fintech ramps.

Credit: We will offer secured credit cards with the ability to use crypto or cash as the securing asset.

In 2021, we were recognized as a Top-250 fintech company at Benzinga’s Global Fintech Awards and are currently nominated for Best New Product at their 2022 awards.

Our brand is authentic. We are most proud to have recently been given the Spirit of Detroit Award from the Detroit City Council. It’s like a Grammy where we are from, one of the highest honors given to those who have shown outstanding leadership and dedication to improving the quality of life. This is our mission for African-Americans.

What does success mean to you?
We define success as freedom; financial, spiritual, and cultural freedom.

Contact Info:

• Email: hey@obsidianbanking.com
• Instagram: @obsidianbank
• Twitter: @obsidianbanking

Image Credits
@jaybellproductions on Instagram