As part of its ongoing commitment to fostering diversity and inclusion and driving equity through innovation, Northwestern Mutual announced today new initiatives that will support Black startup founders nationally and locally in its headquarters of Milwaukee. The company’s venture capital fund, Northwestern Mutual Future Ventures, will dedicate $20 million to investing in startup companies founded by Black entrepreneurs. The company will also launch the Northwestern Mutual Black Founder Accelerator powered by gener8tor, a nationally ranked startup accelerator.
Black founders receive less than one percent of venture capital funding annually and Northwestern Mutual and gener8tor are committed to investing in and supporting Black entrepreneurs to help close this funding gap and advance their companies.
“At Northwestern Mutual we’re dedicated to supporting and promoting diversity not just within our company, but within our communities and the businesses we partner with nationwide,” said John Grogan, chief product and innovation officer, Northwestern Mutual. “Allocating $20 million is only the beginning – we will continue to invest in and provide opportunities for Black founders and are committed to providing access to capital and resources to help them grow their businesses.”
Northwestern Mutual Future Ventures is focused on advancing the company’s investment strategy of engaging startups whose technologies have the potential to transform how people experience financial security. The investment criteria for the $20 million Black founder funding allocation is aligned with Northwestern Mutual Future Ventures’ key strategic areas of focus:
- Building for consumers’ changing financial preferences
- Reimagining the client experience
- The digital health revolution
- Transformational analytics and technologies
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