A couple of years ago, M&T Bank in Buffalo, New York, set out to improve banking services in racially diverse communities.
Based on feedback from neighborhood groups, faith-based organizations and other community partners across its Northeast and Mid-Atlantic footprint, the company created a multi-pronged approach to improving customer experience and breaking down barriers to financial inclusion.
The bank’s plan included a Spanish-language website, which launched in July, and the addition of Chinese and Korean language capabilities at more than 1,600 ATMs that M&T operates.
As of Thursday, the plan also includes 99 more retail branches designated as “multicultural banking centers,” bringing the bank’s total number of such locations to 118. The sites, which are located in eight states and Washington, D.C., offer banking services in clients’ preferred languages. They employ people who live in and understand the cultural nuances of each multicultural community.
“America is becoming more and more diverse, and the customer base continues to change,” David Femi, head of multicultural banking and diverse market strategy at the $151.9 billion-asset bank, said in an interview. “We’re ready to be at the forefront of that change, and part of that is making sure that our financial centers are reflective of the communities we serve.”
The makeup of the U.S. population is indeed in transition. The 2020 census showed that while the white population remained the largest group with 204.3 million people, it declined by 8.6% between 2010 and 2020.
Meanwhile, during the same 10-year period, the Asian population grew by 35.5%, the Hispanic or Latino population expanded by 23% and the Black or African American population rose by 5.6%.
M&T has been paying attention to the nation’s demographics as part of an ongoing effort to better understand the communities it serves. The bank says that it has seen customer growth at the branches previously designated as multicultural banking centers, and that it hopes expanding such services will yield even more multicultural customers.
It’s not only the right thing to do for the community, it’s also the smart move, said Chris Kay, M&T’s head of consumer banking, business banking and marketing.
“I think what differentiates us is the notion that for us to be relevant and sustainable in the community, we actually have to be the bank for the community,” Kay added. “It’s the way we operate.”
Multicultural banking was included in the bank’s first community reinvestment plan, which is tied to M&T’s pending acquisition of People’s United Financial in Bridgeport, Connecticut. Announced in October,
M&T designated its first multicultural banking centers in late 2020, Kay said. Nineteen individual branches throughout the bank’s footprint were part of the yearlong pilot program.
During that first year, the bank deployed language-specific marketing materials and hung posters and other images reflecting the communities in which those branches were located, Femi said.
The 99 new locations, scattered throughout the bank’s branch service area, were identified with help from neighborhood-level census data on non-English speakers, community partners and M&T’s own bankers, the bank said.
To celebrate the milestone of operating 100-plus multicultural banking centers, M&T customers, partners and employees on Thursday rang the opening bell of the New York Stock Exchange.
All of the multicultural branches are located in areas where at least 20% of the population is Black or Hispanic, or at least 10% is Asian American, Russian or Polish. At least 1% of the population in each local community speaks a language other than English and, in communities where language barriers exist, such branches have at least one multilingual employee to assist customers.
None of the branches are located in Massachusetts, Vermont, New Hampshire or Maine, four states that will be added to M&T’s territory if the Federal Reserve approves the nearly year-old pending acquisition of People’s United. The $7.6 billion deal received approval last year from the New York State Department of Financial Services and the Connecticut Department of Banking.
M&T sought to be “intentional” about which branches it designated as multicultural in order to truly connect with communities, Femi said. The bank expects to name another 50 or so multicultural branches this year and next year, while also hosting small business symposiums and innovation labs targeting multicultural business owners and entrepreneurs, he added.
M&T is also in the process of adding Spanish-language capabilities to its nearly two-year-old online appointment setting feature, which is currently available only in English, Femi said.
“I think we’re just starting,” Femi said about the bank’s efforts to be culturally inclusive. “We see tremendous opportunities in this space.”
