Wwhether it’s through embedding financial literacy gems into his lyrics or investing in black-led money management apps, mogul Shawn ‘Jay-Z’ Carter has been a great champion of financial well-being. Brooklyn native has teamed up with Twitter co-founder Jack Dorsey to promote financial inclusion, Business Insider reported.
As technology continues to shape the world of commerce, Carter wants to ensure that education around these advances is available and that communities that have historically been marginalized are not left out of the revolution. He teamed up with Dorsey to cultivate The Bitcoin Academy; an initiative designed exclusively for those living in Brooklyn’s Marcy Houses—where Carter grew up—to equip residents with knowledge about the evolution of financial systems. Among the topics covered were decentralization, bitcoin and taxes, career paths in crypto and wealth building. With support from T-Mobile, the academy provided smartphones and over 100 MiFi devices for residents to participate.
The 12-week program started in June and ended on Wednesday. To celebrate the participants’ dedication, Carter and Dorsey awarded them with $1,000 in bitcoin through platforms such as the Cash App and other digital wallet apps. Lamar Wilsonthe Black Bitcoin Billionaire founder who served as one of the academy’s instructors says it’s important to take a culturally responsive approach when teaching the different facets of financial education.
“Because I understand the information and I can break it down into a language that other people can understand, especially people where I come from, I feel like it’s almost my duty to make sure I get the information to them, and it’s not like to recommend them to buy bitcoin or try to get them to invest all their money or something like that,” he shared in a statement, according to the news agency. “It’s really just, let me give the information and let you as a very intelligent being take your own decisions.”
Several initiatives have been launched to equip underserved communities with economic skills resources. Earlier this year, athlete and activist LeBron James teamed up with Crypto.com to create a blockchain technology-centric program for kids.
SEE ALSO:
LeBron James leads initiative centered on teaching youth about cryptocurrency
The 11-year-old aims to transform a bus into a mobile financial competence center for young people
5 pictures
