Lakewood, Colo.-based FirstBank was recently honored at the Martin Luther King Jr. Business Awards ceremony for its work in empowering diverse communities.
The award recognizes organizations or people who make extraordinary contributions to the community in honor of the civil rights icon.
The more than $25 billion FirstBank was nominated for the award by the Asian Chamber of Commerce, which cited the bank’s work to end economic and social disparities through grant programs, charitable contributions and affordable housing initiatives. In 2020, FirstBank established the state’s first Multicultural Banking Center.
The MBC joined First Bank’s Spanish and Asian banking centers, where customers receive financial services with an understanding of their culture and in their preferred language — Spanish, Mandarin, Cantonese, Vietnamese, Korean and Ethiopian. The Multicultural Banking Center offers community collaboration opportunities, financial education classes and homeownership tools. FirstBank provided $1.4 billion in SBA Paycheck Protection Program loans to 14,000 businesses.
FirstBank, which has 110 branches across Colorado, Arizona and California, partnered with the Gates Family Foundation to extend $25 million in financial relief to veteran- and women-owned businesses along with businesses of color and and worked with Asian, Hispanic, Black/African American Chambers to help members access PPP funding. FirstBank has contributed nearly $75 million to nonprofits since 2000, including many focused on diversity, equity and inclusion. It has also introduced affordable housing initiatives and grant programs for people of color.
“FirstBank has always been driven by our core philosophy to do what’s right for customers, communities and employees, and we believe embracing our differences only makes us stronger,” said Tony Oum, FirstBank’s executive vice president of multicultural banking. “Our work in the community has shown us time and again that inclusion is one of our most powerful assets. We are deeply honored to be recognized for this award, and will continue to work towards a more equitable world within and outside of our organization.”