BACKING OUR COMMUNITIES Building financial confidence is important in the communities where we live, work, and operate. To this end, we’ve created goals to support economic empowerment and equity through grants, programs, and initiatives. We’re proud of our progress so far. Toward our goal of investing $500 million in building more resilient and equitable communities from 2021 through 2025, we have underwritten $265 million in community development loans and investments in 2021 through The American Express Center for Community Development (CCD). These funds support small business needs, job creation and retention, and affordable housing, including the development of more than 1,900 units of affordable housing. We also continue to expand our Backing Small initiative, including $17 million in funds committed through 2024 to support underrepresented and economically vulnerable small business owners and entrepreneurs and includes grant programs, mentoring support, and technical assistance through established community partnerships. Programs include: • The Coalition to Back Black Businesses • Backing Historic Small Restaurants • Backing International Small Restaurants • Inclusive Backing • Blueprint: Backing BIPOC Businesses in Canada • First Nations Business Growth Program in Australia • Backing underrepresented-owned businesses: American Express and the US Black Chambers, Inc. worked together to expand ByBlack with the launch of the first national certification program exclusively for Black-owned businesses. First created as an extensive directory of Black-owned businesses, this no-cost digital platform now unlocks more ways to reach new customers and secure contracts for Black-owned businesses across the United States. ByBlack provides businesses an approved accreditation and enables consumers and other companies to easily find US-based Black-owned businesses. The Coalition to Back Black Businesses (CBBB), founded in partnership with the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation and four national Black chambers, is now in its third year. In February 2022, amid supply-chain disruptions and the continuing pandemic, we announced that an additional 491 Black-owned small businesses across 39 states were each awarded a $5,000 grant as part of our multi-year, $10 million commitment and are eligible to apply for enhancement grants of $25,000 annually. 10. Based on survey conducted in Q4 2021 by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce Foundation A CONTINUING COMMITMENT TO BACK BLACK BUSINESSES 50% of grantees saw an increase in sales revenue in the second half of 2021 after receiving a Coalition to Back Black Businesses grant, compared to 33% of Black-owned businesses who did not receive a grant. 10 50% INTRODUCTION PROMOTING DE&I ADVANCING CLIMATE SOLUTIONS BUILDING FINANCIAL CONFIDENCE OUR ESG GOVERNANCE & OPERATING RESPONSIBLY SUPPORTING DATA OUR COMMITMENT TO ESG 69
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