OneUnited Bank’s Digital Strategy & Financial Inclusion

Teri Williams, President and Chief Operating Officer of OneUnited Bank, articulated a clear vision during her appearance on Bloomberg Businessweek Daily: to transform community banking through technology. Speaking with hosts Carol Massar and David Gura, Williams emphasized that digital innovation isn’t merely about keeping pace with industry trends but about fundamentally reimagining how banking services reach those traditionally excluded from the financial mainstream. This digital-first approach represents a strategic pivot for the institution, positioning it at the intersection of technological advancement and social mission.

The bank’s commitment to this transformation is evident in its partnership strategy, which brings together diverse industry leaders. By collaborating with technology powerhouses like Google and Salesforce alongside financial institutions JPMorgan and Citi, OneUnited Bank is creating a unique ecosystem that combines cutting-edge technology with deep financial expertise. These alliances enable the bank to develop sophisticated digital solutions while maintaining its core focus on serving communities that have historically faced barriers to banking access.

At the heart of OneUnited Bank’s digital transformation lies the WiseOne AI platform, a sophisticated artificial intelligence system designed to enhance customer experience and expand financial access. Williams described this platform as a cornerstone of the bank’s strategy to provide personalized, accessible banking services. The AI system represents a significant investment in technology infrastructure, demonstrating the bank’s commitment to staying at the forefront of financial innovation while maintaining its community-focused mission.

The development of WiseOne AI in partnership with Google and Salesforce signals a new era for community banking, where artificial intelligence becomes a tool for financial inclusion rather than just efficiency. By leveraging Google’s AI capabilities and Salesforce’s customer relationship management expertise, OneUnited Bank is creating a platform that can understand and respond to the unique needs of underbanked communities. This approach represents a departure from traditional banking technology, which often prioritizes cost reduction over customer accessibility.

Williams emphasized that the WiseOne platform is designed to be both sophisticated and accessible, providing financial guidance and services that might otherwise be unavailable to many Americans. The AI system’s development reflects a careful balance between technological advancement and practical application, ensuring that it serves real community needs rather than simply implementing technology for its own sake.

OneUnited Bank’s mission extends beyond technological innovation to address fundamental gaps in the American financial system. Williams detailed how the bank specifically targets underbanked and unbanked Americans, populations that have often been overlooked by traditional financial institutions. Through its digital platforms and community-focused approach, the bank is working to reduce the estimated millions of Americans who lack access to basic banking services.

The partnerships with JPMorgan and Citi provide crucial infrastructure and expertise that enhance OneUnited’s ability to serve these communities. These collaborations allow the bank to leverage the scale and resources of larger financial institutions while maintaining its specialized focus on underserved markets. Williams explained that this cooperative approach enables OneUnited to offer more comprehensive services than would be possible through standalone efforts, creating a model for how large and small financial institutions can work together to address systemic financial exclusion.

Financial literacy forms a critical component of this mission, with Williams emphasizing that technology alone cannot solve financial inclusion challenges. The bank integrates educational components into its digital platforms, helping customers build the knowledge and skills needed for long-term financial health. This dual focus on access and education represents a holistic approach to financial inclusion that addresses both immediate service needs and underlying knowledge gaps.

Williams’ discussion with Massar and Gura painted a picture of a financial institution that sees technological advancement and social mission as complementary rather than competing priorities. The bank’s approach suggests a new model for community banking in the digital age—one where scale and specialization, technology and humanity, profit and purpose can coexist and reinforce each other.

The success of OneUnited Bank’s strategy could have implications far beyond its immediate customer base. As Williams noted, demonstrating that serving underbanked communities can be both socially impactful and commercially viable may encourage other institutions to follow similar paths. The partnerships with industry leaders like Google, Salesforce, JPMorgan, and Citi suggest that this model has already gained significant credibility within the broader financial and technology sectors.

Looking forward, Williams indicated that OneUnited Bank will continue to refine its digital offerings while expanding its reach to underserved communities. The WiseOne AI platform represents just the beginning of what Williams described as an ongoing commitment to leveraging technology for financial inclusion. As digital banking continues to evolve, OneUnited’s experiment in combining high-tech solutions with high-touch community banking may offer valuable lessons for the entire financial industry about how to build a more inclusive financial future.