Second-oldest Black-owned bank in US receives $3 million from Triangle company

DURHAM, N.C. (WTVD) -- David Foye owns The Kitchen Archive.

His two locations in both Durham and Raleigh gives caterers, bakers and food truck owners a space to cook.

"The main thing I enjoy is the autonomy," said Foye. "The pandemic has made it very challenging."

When the pandemic shut down the food service industry, Foye's commercial kitchen also took a financial hit.

He called M&F Bank in Durham, the second oldest Black-owned bank in the country, for help with a Payment Protection Plan loan.

Since the pandemic, the bank has given out more than 800 PPP loans statewide, 65 percent of them were minority firms of color.

"We are still not out of the woods just yet with pandemic. Small firms. Minority Black and Latino are still in a recovery mode. And one of the challenges is access to capital to sustain themselves as they are going through the recover," said James Sills, president and CEO of M&F Bank.

Recently, the bank received a $3 million dollar deposit from the Triangle based e-commerce firm ChannelAdvisor.

The deposit will help the bank repurpose the money, providing loans to businesses who need it most.

According to a survey by the US Chamber of Commerce, 19 percent of minority owned businesses plan to apply for a loan during the pandemic, compared to just 6 percent of nonminority companies.

David Spitz is CEO of ChannelAdvisor. He said the murder of George Floyd was a factor in the decision to make the deposit.

"I think it was a catalyst for us to realize there was more that we could do. More that we should do to support of diversity, opportunity in our community," said Spitz. He said the company chose M&F because of its deep connection and support to the communities of color for more than century.

M&F Bank has been in Durham for 114 years.