Racism cost the US economy $16 trillion over the last 2 decades, Citi study finds
Sep 23, 2020, 21:20 IST
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- Race-based discrimination and inequality has cost the US about $16 trillion in lost gross domestic product over the last two decades, according to a new study published by Citi, first reported by Bloomberg.
- The lost GDP is a result of Black Americans earning less than white Americans, having less access to home and small business loans, and limited access to higher education.
- If the US could immediately end "the most severe forms of economic discrimination against African Americans," US GDP would see a $5 trillion boost by 2025, Bloomberg reported.
- In 2019, McKinsey estimated that the racial wealth gap will cost the US economy up to $1.5 trillion between 2019 and 2028.
- “We have a responsibility and an opportunity to confront this longstanding societal ill,” Citigroup vice chairman Raymond McGuire said in the report.
- Citi recently announced a $1 billion commitment toward closing the racial wealth gap in the US.
- Citi is not the only company making this kind of commitment. Mastercard also recently pledged to invest $500 million toward closing the racial wealth gap and promoting financial inclusion among Black people.