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This week, Vice President Harris pledged to provide one million Black entrepreneurs.
forgivable loans of up to $20,000 to help them start their business in collaboration with the
Small Business Administrationenhancing their potential and removing barriers for this group. According to the
Massachusetts Institute of TechnologyBlack Americans are twice as likely to be
credit refused by banks, whatever their credit scores. Additionally, the Minority Business Development Agency of the U.S. Department of Commerce highlighted that limited access to capital remains the primary barrier limiting the creation and growth of Black-owned businesses.
The Democratic presidential candidate website revealed that: “Vice President Harris will build an economy of opportunity where everyone has the opportunity not only to get by, but to get ahead. She knows that black men have long felt that their voice in our political process too often goes unheard and that there is so much untapped ambition and leadership within the black male community. Black men and boys deserve a president who will give them the opportunity to unleash this talent and potential by removing historic barriers to wealth creation, education, employment, income, health and by improving the criminal justice system. Black men deserve a president who will deliver on his promises and equip them with the tools and resources to make their aspirations a reality.
This includes providing black entrepreneurs financial freedomreducing costs to better support themselves and their families, and training with mentoring programs that lead to well-paying jobs in thriving industries. Continuing her work fighting predatory lenders when she was California attorney general, Harris also hopes to expand access to affordable banking options so that black men and others unbanked due to high fees can save, invest and build credit. On top of that – and prevalent across the fintech sector – is the commitment to support “a regulatory framework for cryptocurrencies and other digital assets so that Black men who invest in and own these assets are protected.”
Trump’s campaign has begun accept crypto donationsfollowing his earlier pledge to become the first major party candidate to embrace bitcoin, ether and others
digital currencies. Earlier this year, DonaldJTrump.com released a statement mentioning how the former president “cut regulations and championed innovation in financial technology, while Democrats, like Biden and his official surrogate Elizabeth Warren, continue to believe that only government has the answers to how our nation leads the world.
In less than a month, American citizens will go to the polls and vote in the 2024 presidential election. As Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump prepare to take over the White House in 2025, let’s take a look at what the Democratic Party candidate as well as Governor Tim Walz has presented and what the opportunity economy means for the fintech sector.
Small business and entrepreneurship
As mentioned above, Harris and Walz prioritize entrepreneurship and small businesses, saying these organizations, which include fintech startups, are “the engines of our economy.” Prior to this election race, Harris notably increased access to capital for small businesses and brought venture capital to areas of Central America that have been neglected. This generated “a record 19 million new business applications, tripling Small Business Administration loans to Black-owned businesses, and more than doubling small loans to Latino and women-owned businesses.”
As president, Harris plans to complete 25 million new business applications by the end of her first term, more than 10 million more than Trump saw during his term. Taxes on startup expenses will be reduced from $5,000 to $50,000, and the paperwork involved in starting a new organization will be reduced, allowing newcomers to get involved, join and thrive in the fintech sector.
Innovation
Under the Biden Administration, Vice President Harris worked to pass landmark legislation such as the bipartisan Infrastructure Act, the
CHIPS and Science Actthe Inflation Reduction Act and the American Rescue Plan. While in the short term this has resulted in thousands of infrastructure projects and billions in private sector investment, it has also helped connect all Americans to accessible and affordable internet. This is extremely important to reduce the number of unbanked people, help improve technological literacy and increase employment opportunities.
“As President, Kamala Harris will build on this administration’s progress to ensure American industries and workers thrive. Vice President Harris will continue to support American leadership in semiconductors, clean energy, AI and other cutting-edge industries of the future,” reads her website. campaign.
Energy costs and the climate crisis
As attorney general, Harris held polluters accountable and voted to tie the bill.
Inflation Reduction Actthe largest investment in climate action in history. This law involves lowering household energy costs, “creating hundreds of thousands of high-quality clean energy jobs and building a thriving clean energy economy, while ensuring security and America’s energy independence thanks to record energy production. Addressing the climate crisis will be a priority for the Democratic Party and is committed to working to advance environmental justice, protect public lands and public health, increase resilience to climate disasters, to name just a few things. She also made it clear to
COP28where she declared her commitment to “fight for the freedom to breathe clean air, drink clean water, and live free from the pollution that fuels the climate crisis.”