Here are some highlights from the discussion: Why is it that the federal government is going to reward, or “bailout”, the banking institutions that have caused the problem like Wachovia, Bank of America, Citi Group, etc and not help out the smaller more local banks like Capitol City, BB&T, or First Bank of Coweta County, for instance?It is their system, it is their gain, and as long as you’re not economically empowered you don’t play. And as Black people, we don’t play. Because we have never built our capital to a point to where we have influence. In order to play in the game, you have to have capital. In order to have capital, you have to come together collectively and support one another and have interest in one another and together you can change the dynamics of your community.What’s happening in the market place today essentially shouldn’t change how you handle your retirement savings. If you’re not fully engaged into your 401K’s up to the max, you need to do that. With the market on sale, this is a good thing you should diversify your asset allocations (don’t put all your eggs in one basket).

We need to focus on saving. You need to have liquidity in your household. Just in case you loss your job, you need to be liquid. Look at how you are spending your money. You can’t live paycheck to paycheck.

On Wednesday, Oct 15, the Atlanta Metropolitan Black Chamber of Commerce (AMBCC) held a banking and finance roundtable discussion at Paschal’s in Atlanta. The roundtable panelists (George Andrews/ CEO, Capitol City Bank & Trust Co., Gregory Price/Economic Professor at Morehouse College, Sheldon Joseph/The Joseph Consortium, James Jackson/Jackson Securities, Tony Bryant/ 1st Service Mortgage, Michael T. Hill/AMBCC, and a few other businessmen) sat down with Black businessmen and women, analysts, and accountants to discuss the nations economic situation and how it is affecting our community.

The major goal of the discussion was to help people get a clear understanding of what’s going on and come up with solutions that will help us all overcome the financial strain.

George Andrews:

James Jackson:

This speaks to what AMBCC is doing, is that they are letting you know that there are resources in your communities. Places like Capitol City,Credit Unions, Jackson Securities and Atlanta Life, these companies and businesses that have the best interest of the community at heart. We need your support to be successful. WallStreet has been perputating the fraud for a long time. They’ve taken us down twice in the last 3 years. So don’t believe that they have all the answers. Until we support our own institutions and make them strong, banks will continue to live off our community. Because in their minds, we have no choice.


The remainder of the program was very educational and the panelists enlightened everyone in the room with their knowledge and passion to help the community. If you would like to find out more information or join the AMBCC, please go to www.ambcc.org.

To hear the entire 1 hour discussion, click here!