JPMorgan Chase
/OVERVIEW: JPMorgan Chase supports local, regional, and national organizations working to improve the economic health of local communities.
IP TAKE: JPMorgan Chase has recently restructured its corporate impact strategy and currently conducts its grantmaking primarily through the lens of racial equity. Programs and initiatives that are not aimed at improving the economic situation of Black and Latino communities and individuals are not likely to attract this funder’s attention. Moreover, despite it’s $2.5 trillion pledge to address sustainability and climate change, this funder continues investments in fossil fuels, the largest of its kind in the banking sector.
This corporate funder has a broad range of grantmaking interests, but getting its attention may prove difficult. It is not particularly transparent or accessible. It does not maintain a comprehensive grants database on its website and only selectively promotes featured initiatives. It does not accept unsolicited proposals or requests for funding nor does it provide a reliable way to inquire about opportunities. This is a low-key funder that prefers working proactively, rather than with potential grantees or the public. It will be hard to get on this funder’s radar unless your organization is large and established, which still requires major networking at the executive level.
PROFILE: The massive financial services firm JPMorgan Chase does its grantmaking through its Impact and Corporate Responsibility arm, which seeks to invest in its “customers, employees and communities around the world to break down barriers to opportunity and create an economy that works for more people.” The firm has given away hundreds of millions of dollars to nonprofits worldwide in recent years, with a five-pronged focus on Community Development, Careers and Skills, Business Growth and Entrepreneurship, Financial Health and Wealth Creation, and Environmental Sustainability.
Grants for Housing and Community Development
JPMorgan Chase’s Community Development program area is currently dedicated to “promoting housing stability and improving housing affordability for Black, Latino, and other households of color.”
Grants to promote Housing Affordability support “innovative housing solutions,” “local, comprehensive housing plans,” and policies that “remove barriers to production and equitable access.”
In terms of Housing Stability, the bank works to “minimize evictions and foreclosures,” promotes policies that “provide immediate relief and improve the resiliency of cost-burdened households,” and funds non-profit housing providers in its giving area.
It also has an initiative called Advancing Cities, “a $500 million, five-year initiative to invest in solutions that bolster the long-term vitality of the world’s cities and the communities within them that have not benefited from economic growth.” Cities currently receiving funding include Paris, Chicago, Detroit, San Francisco, and the Greater Washington Region.
Past grantees include Opportunity CLE Neighborhoods in Cleveland, OH to “provide flexible loans and real estate development technical assistance in the target neighborhoods to attract private capital,” the 614 for Linden in Columbus, OH “to advance the One Linden Plan by developing affordable housing, providing capital to small businesses, creating jobs and nurturing healthier children and families,” and LIFT in Washington, DC, to “provide financial coaching to individuals who live below the poverty line.”
Grants for Economic Development and Opportunity
JPMorgan Chase conducts grantmaking for economic development and work opportunity through several of its program areas.
The Jobs and Skills program is a commitment to “develop, test and scale innovative efforts that prepare individuals with the skills they need to be successful in a rapidly changing economy.”
A subprogram dedicated to Career Readiness works through “investing in community partners,” “advancing policy solutions,” and “mentoring and support” to help youths between the ages of 15 and 24 develop job skills and experience.
At the secondary level, JPMorgan also has a fellowship initiative that provides academic support, college counseling and mentoring young men of color.
The foundation also works through its Small Business Expansion program, a $30-million initiative launched in 2014 that “supports small businesses by connecting them to critical resources to help them grow faster, create jobs and strengthen local economies.”
Initiatives in this program include a special-purpose credit program for Black and Latino business owners, educational resources for entrepreneurs, one-on-one coaching and mentorship, and accelerator programs.
In a past year, JPMorgan Chase gave a substantial grant to the California Institute for Quantitative Biosciences (QB3) at UC San Francisco to “promote biotech innovation in San Francisco” by enabling it to hire an entrepreneurship program manager and to “fund internships at the center to assist students from economically disadvantaged neighborhoods in their efforts to enter the biotech industry.”
The Financial Health and Wealth Creation program aims to support vulnerable groups such as “low-income women, immigrants, people of color, and the aging” with educational resources, financial tools, and other programs to “help more people achieve financial stability and meet their long-term goals.”
Initiatives include the Financial Solutions Lab, an initiative to “cultivate, support and scale innovative ideas that advance the financial health of low- to moderate-income (LMI) consumers"; Catalyst Fund, an “inclusive fintech accelerator” that “advances financial health for underserved people across the world,” especially Kenya, Nigeria, South Africa, India, and Mexico; and Financial Inclusion Lab, a “collaboration with the Indian Institute of Management Ahmedabad's Centre for Innovation Incubation and Entrepreneurship.”
Grants for Climate Change and Clean Energy
JPMorgan Chase’s Environmental Sustainability program works to “help our clients navigate the challenges and capitalize on the long-term economic opportunities and environmental benefits of progressing toward a low-carbon world.” The three main initiatives in this area address Net Zero Aligned Targets, Sustainable Development Targets, and Operational Sustainability Targets.
With the stated aim of achieving global net-zero carbon emissions by 2050, JPMorgan Chase is “aligning key sectors of our financing portfolio with net zero emissions” in accordance with its Carbon Compass methodology.
Under its Sustainable Development Targets, it aims to commit $1 trillion by 2030 to “drive climate action, clean energy, and sustainable resource management, with a focus on accelerating the deployment of solutions for cleaner sources of energy.”
Operational Sustainability Targets address the companies carbon neutrality across its own operations.
Important Grant Details:
Grant amounts generally range from $1,000 to $1.75 million, with most grants staying under the $100,000 mark. JPMorgan Chase does not maintain a database of past grants, but grantseekers may peruse its Social Impact page for featured stories on ongoing initiatives or review its Annual Reports.
The foundation limits its grantmaking to geographic regions of the world in which it has a business and employee presence, which are listed here.
The JPMorgan Chase Foundation does not accept or review unsolicited letters of inquiry or grant proposals.
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