DePaul is further supporting the women's small business economy by collaborating with First Women's Bank. The organization is the only women-founded, women-owned and women-led commercial bank in the country on a mission to grow the economy and elevate the role of women within it. With this relationship, DePaul is the first higher education institution to become a client of the bank.
FWB combines national small business association lending with deposits from mission-aligned individuals, corporations and organizations to create accessible financing for small businesses with a strategic focus on the women's economy. DePaul's support of FWB's mission partners, through FDIC-insured mission deposits, helps expand economic opportunity for the women's economy.
“While Wintrust continues to be the university's core bank partner and its principal bank for deposits and wide range of banking and cash management needs, we are pleased to establish this relationship to support First Women's Bank's innovative capital solutions for small business with a focus on women and minority entrepreneurs," says Brian Sullivan, treasurer for the university.
FWB opened its headquarters in Chicago in fall 2021. The bank's president and CEO, Marianne Markowitz, is a graduate of DePaul's Kellstadt School of Business.
FWB and DePaul plan to collaborate on topics with a strategic focus on women entrepreneurs, including through speaking and program opportunities with the Women in Entrepreneurship Institute at the Driehaus College of Business.
For more information on First Women's Bank, please visit https://www.firstwomens.bank.