Financial wellness for employees of color: A new approach to narrow the wealth gap

Financial stress continues to take a significant toll on workers, especially during a time of economic uncertainty coming on the heels of the pandemic. Minority employees, for a variety of historical and cultural reasons, often are the hardest hit.

Yemi Rose, who immigrated to the United States from Jamaica, believes the workplace can be the ideal place to provide much-needed support and change the trajectory for those who have been at a disadvantage.

“We view the workplace as the frontlines in a battle to close the racial wealth gap,” said Rose, founder and CEO of OfColor. “We provide these enterprises with our technology and services in employee benefits to accomplish this. Our thesis is that we want to mimic the way the white middle class was created in this country, which was through FHA and GI subsidies distributed through the banking sector. We are looking at mass distribution through the employee benefit system to provide employees of color with subsidized tools and services.”

OfColor is a minority-owned financial wellness platform focused on the financial empowerment of employees of color. The company works with large enterprises seeking to improve the financial health of this stressed segment of employees, providing financial technology tools, culturally relevant content and financial coaching and therapy.

“We want to intervene in the financial lives of the 20% of the employees in the workplace who are really struggling and, in doing so, have an outsized impact on the rest of the organization,” he said.

Earlier this month, Financial Finesse Ventures announced a partnership with OfColor. The company is fully funded by Financial Finesse, a leading independent provider of workplace financial wellness coaching programs.

“Our intent is not just social responsibility but to invest in companies that are transformative, that have the ability to transform millions of financial lives for the better, with a particular focus on those people who need help the most,” said Liz Davidson, founder and CEO of Financial Finesse and Financial Finesse Ventures. “I see tremendous potential from the integration of our two companies. Together we will be able to meaningfully address the soaring rates of financial stress among employees of color, chip away at our country’s chronic racial wealth gap and transform millions of financial lives.”

With this investment, Financial Finesse will bring OfColor to the more than 12,000 employers it currently serves, significantly amplifying its own DEI efforts and rapidly scaling OfColor’s reach and impact. The partnership links the naturally complementary firms in ways that will propel both forward. In addition to funding, Financial Finesse will consult with OfColor, leveraging its institutional knowledge of the financial wellness market to drive continued innovation, operational efficiencies and advancements in technology, data and analytics.

The partnership will help OfColor expand its reach and help more employees, Rose said.

“We have long admired Financial Finesse’s effectiveness in driving life-changing outcomes for employees and value for employers,” he said. “It is even more impressive that they have been able to achieve all that they have while remaining independent and without bias. As many of our users have been taken advantage of by the financial services industry, a strong ethical foundation was crucial in our choice of partner. We’re thrilled to join the Financial Finesse Ventures portfolio and to leverage their expertise to advance our shared goals.”

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Financial Finesse plans to introduce OfColor’s group therapy and coaching sessions to the 12,000 employers who use its services and integrate its materials into all digital hubs.

Davidson encourages employers to consider the specific needs of minority workers when developing financial wellness programs.

“Focusing on this population will drive not only transformation and possibly restore upward mobility but drive success as a company,” she said. “In our experience, doing well and doing good not only are not mutually exclusive but they are deeply integrated. You absolutely can do both for your organization.”