Five Full-Time Bank On Fellows Selected to Lead Coalitions of Government Leaders, Community Organizations and Financial Institutions to Increase Banking Access

NEW YORK, April 20, 2026 /PRNewswire/ -- The Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund (CFE Fund) announced today the launch of a new cohort of the Bank On Fellows initiative, made possible by a $1 million grant from the Wells Fargo Foundation. Across the United States, millions of households are outside of the financial mainstream, without a safe banking account to manage their money and build a strong financial future. Bank On coalitions work to address this challenge by connecting local residents to safe and affordable banking accounts. The Bank On Fellows initiative is the first national initiative focused on building experienced banking access leaders across the country, equipping them with the training, tools, and resources to make significant advancements in local banking access efforts while also generating best practices for other coalitions. The Wells Fargo Foundation's grant will support five full-time Bank On Fellows for two years to help connect people in Jacksonville, FL; Miami, FL; Philadelphia, PA; Salt Lake City, UT; and San Diego, CA; to safe, low-cost banking accounts. Since 2016, Wells Fargo Foundation philanthropic giving totaled more than $4.8 million to Cities for Financial Empowerment for the Bank On Fellows program.

The goal of the national Bank On movement is to ensure that everyone has access to safe and affordable financial products and services. The Bank On National Account Standards define characteristics of a safe, affordable, and fully functional consumer account; accounts certified as meeting Bank On Standards are available at over 500 banks and credit unions across the country in over 46,000 branches, comprising more than two thirds of the U.S. deposit market share.

This fifth cohort of coalitions chosen for the Bank On Fellowship includes Bank On Miami; Bank On Northeast Florida; Bank On Philadelphia; Bank On Salt Lake; and Bank On San Diego. They will join a community of over 100 local Bank On coalitions across the country, led by or working closely with local government to expand access to financial products through payment and program opportunities including unemployment insurance, workforce development programs, and more. This latest cohort will support five host organizations; each already leads an active Bank On coalition with staff who have completed Bank On foundational training. As such, incoming fellows will assume leadership roles in coalitions that are already actively advancing banking access work. This cohort is positioned to immediately begin building meaningful banking access partnerships under the new Fellows' leadership.

"Banking access is foundational to financial stability," said Jonathan Mintz, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund. "A safe, affordable, mainstream account is critical to helping people manage their money and improve their financial health. Bank On coalitions across the country connect people to safe accounts at scale, and a dedicated coalition leader will only supercharge this work. We're thankful to the Wells Fargo Foundation for their ongoing investment in this work, and excited to partner with these coalition leaders for the next cohort of Bank On Fellows."

"Expanding banking access requires strong local leadership," said Bonnie Wallace, Head of Financial Opportunity Philanthropy at Wells Fargo. "The proven Bank On Fellows model places full-time leaders in established and new coalitions to align local efforts and expand access to safe, affordable banking."

In the decade plus since its national launch, the Bank On movement has grown significantly; there are more than 14 million Bank On certified accounts currently open, with over 4.8 million newly opened just last year. The latest report from the St. Louis Federal Reserve and the CFE Fund's Bank On National Data Hub revealed that Bank On continues to bring previously unbanked populations into the financial mainstream; in 2024, 84% of customers who opened Bank On certified accounts were new to the financial institution. Thanks to the innovative partnerships built across financial institutions, community organizations, federal regulators, and government agencies, the national unbanked rate—now just 4.2% of U.S. households—has dropped by nearly half since its peak. This latest cohort of Fellows will continue this crucial work, helping to bring the hardest-to-reach populations into the financial mainstream.

About the Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund (CFE Fund)
The CFE Fund supports municipal efforts to improve the financial stability of households by leveraging opportunities unique to local government. By translating cutting-edge experience with large-scale programs, research, and policy in cities of all sizes, the CFE Fund assists mayors and other local leaders to identify, develop, fund, implement, and research pilots and programs that help families build assets and make the most of their financial resources. The CFE Fund is currently working in over 150 cities and counties, and has disbursed over $75 million to local governments and their partners to support these efforts. For more information, please visit www.cfefund.org or follow us on Bluesky at @cfefund.bsky.social.

About Bank On
The CFE Fund's national Bank On movement supports local coalition and financial institution efforts to connect consumers to safe, affordable banking accounts as a fundamental component of financial stability. Already, over 500 accounts at banks and credit unions nationwide – representing over two-thirds of the national deposit market share – are certified as meeting the Bank On National Account Standards, which designate both core and strongly recommended features that ensure low cost, no surprise fees, high functionality, and consumer safety. More than 100 Bank On coalitions across the country are working to connect unbanked and underbanked individuals to certified accounts, often through leveraging large-scale government program and payment opportunities. Visit www.joinbankon.org for more information. 

Media Contact:
Katie Plat
KPlat@cfefund.org

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SOURCE Cities for Financial Empowerment Fund