Bank of Dave’s Lessons on Community Banking
The 2023 Netflix film Bank of Dave tells the inspiring story of a businessman determined to create a community bank that serves local people rather than distant shareholders. While the movie takes creative liberties, its central lesson rings true: when capital stays local, communities thrive. Here’s what Bank of Dave can teach us about the power of community banking.
City Survey: Greater Los Angeles
Greater Los Angeles is one of the most diverse and economically unequal regions in the country. Fortunately, it is also home to a wide range of community banks and credit unions committed to expanding access to capital through affordable housing, small business lending, and community development. Explore some of the best Better Banking Options serving Los Angeles and Orange County.
Disinvesting From War in the Middle East
Many people are asking how their financial decisions connect to global conflicts and military funding. While banking transparency remains limited, moving deposits from large multinational banks to local community institutions can be a meaningful way to align your finances with values of peace, accountability, and community development.
Saving the Planet With Your Savings Account
Most people think about reducing their carbon footprint through daily habits, but your bank account may have an even bigger impact. This review of Project Drawdown’s climate-responsible banking report explores how moving your savings from fossil-fuel-financing mega banks to mission-driven community banks and credit unions can help reduce emissions and support a more sustainable future.
City Survey: Montgomery, Alabama
Montgomery is a city shaped by a rich history, strong community ties, and ongoing efforts to address economic inequality. These Better Banking Options—from Hope Credit Union to local CDFIs and minority-owned institutions—are helping provide access to capital, support underserved communities, and strengthen Montgomery’s local economy.
A Reflection On Our Trip with Hope Credit Union
What does community banking look like in practice? On a trip through the Deep South with Hope Credit Union, we met civil rights leaders, visited community development projects, and saw firsthand how mission-driven lending can help create economic opportunity in communities affected by generations of discrimination and disinvestment.
City Survey: San Francisco, San Jose and Oakland (Bay Area)
The Bay Area is home to some of the most innovative and mission-driven financial institutions in the country. Whether you’re looking to support immigrant communities, affordable housing, small businesses, or environmentally responsible lending, these Better Banking Options in San Francisco, San Jose, and Oakland offer a meaningful alternative to the mega banks.
City Survey: Chicago
Chicago’s banking landscape reflects both the city’s diversity and its history of segregation. From Black-owned banks on the South Side to community-focused institutions serving immigrant neighborhoods, these Better Banking Options are helping expand access to housing, small business lending, and community development throughout the city.
City Survey: Washington, DC
Washington, DC, has a surprisingly rich landscape of Better Banking Options, from Black-owned banks and immigrant-focused credit unions to cooperative lenders and community development institutions. This city survey highlights mission-driven banks and credit unions helping strengthen neighborhoods across the nation’s capital.
What Is Ethical Banking? How Better Banking Supports Communities
Ethical banking is about more than avoiding mega banks—it’s about choosing financial institutions that use your deposits responsibly. From community lending to environmental sustainability and transparency, ethical banks and credit unions can help build a more equitable world while still meeting your everyday banking needs.
Latine Banks To Move Your Money To TODAY
Latine-majority banks play an essential role in providing banking services, lending, and financial access to communities that have historically been underserved by traditional institutions. Here are some of the best-known Latine-majority banks in the United States.
Open An Account At Hope Credit Union TODAY
Hope Credit Union is one of the nation’s leading Better Banking Options, using deposits to fund wealth-building loans in underserved Black communities across the Mid-South.
Truths and Myths of Online Banking
Online banking can offer convenience and lower fees, but not all online banks use your deposits in ways that strengthen communities. Here’s what you should know before choosing where to bank online.
City Survey: Memphis
From Black-led banks to community-focused credit unions, Memphis offers several Better Banking Options making real investments in local neighborhoods and families.
More About Our Data & How It’s Updated
Our Better Banking Options search engine uses FDIC and NCUA data to rank banks and credit unions based on community-focused lending and local impact.
Five Reasons to Break Up With Your Mega Bank
Mega banks prioritize profits and speculative investments over communities. Here are five reasons why moving your money to a local bank or credit union can make a real difference.
Why Aren’t I Seeing My Favorite Banking Option in My Search Results?
Wondering why your favorite bank or credit union isn’t ranking highly in our search engine? Learn how the Better Banking Options scoring system evaluates community lending, local investment, and neighborhood impact.
Why Native American Banking Matters
Native American banks and credit unions play a vital role in addressing generations of economic exclusion and underbanking in Native communities. By supporting housing, small business lending, and financial access, these institutions help strengthen economic opportunity and preserve community self-determination.
How Better Banking Fits Into Ethical Consumerism
Ethical consumerism can feel impossible in today’s economy, but where you bank still matters. Learn how Better Banking helps turn your deposits into community investment and positive economic change.
Why You Should Be Banking With HomeBank Texas
HomeBank Texas is a community-focused bank serving the Dallas-Fort Worth area through affordable housing loans, small business financing, and relationship-based banking. Originally founded in Seagoville, Texas, the bank continues to combine small-town banking values with impactful community development lending across North Texas.