Union Bank unveils $10M grant program for underserved communities
Editor’s note: An earlier version of this article contained an error in the headline. Union Bank’s Community Recovery Program is grants, not loans.
Union Bank is making it easier for marginalized communities to access much-needed grant funds through a new online portal.
The Community Recovery Program is a portal through which the bank is pouring $10 million into communities the bank serves. In the first week of August, the bank launched the program’s online grant application portal, with a goal of reaching underserved communities.
The funds are being directed into three categories: rebuilding the workforce, building financial security and small business recovery efforts. Through the program, Union Bank is trying to support programs providing work re-entry assistance, boost the growth of green jobs, aid financial education and innovation hubs and work closely with business accelerator programs and micro-lending efforts, with an overall goal of helping minority-owned businesses have greater access to capital and assistance in scaling their businesses.
Union Bank has 29 branches in the tri-county region, including those once known as Santa Barbara Bank & Trust. Union Bank has not announced an end date for the Community Recovery Program, but will keep the program open until the funds run out.
