Interview: Taped prior to President Biden exit, John Hope Bryant is on a mission to create one million Black-owned businesses by 2030.

Stephen A. Smith is a New York Times Bestselling Author, Executive Producer, host of ESPN's First Take, and co-host of NBA Countdown. My guest was named to the 2024 TIME Magazine inaugural list of “The Closers,” eighteen global leaders working to close the racial wealth gap. He is a CNBC Contributor, host of the iHeart Radio podcast, “Money and Wealth”, the founder and CEO of Operation HOPE, Inc., the nation’s largest nonprofit provider of financial literacy, and one of LinkedIn’s “Top 10 Voice”. With over three million followers across social media platforms, he is on a mission to create one million Black-owned businesses by 2030. I’m always happy to learn how to make money from people doing it. Please welcome Mr. John Hope Bryant.

John, how are you, sir?

1. Operation HOPE has worked to level the opportunity playing field for underserved America by connecting communities to the private sector through inclusive capitalism since 1992. How has it evolved? [OE has hundreds of offices across the country.]

2. In October 2020, during the pandemic, you and Shopify Founder/CEO Tobi Lütke launched the 1 Million Black Businesses Initiative (1MBB). Did I read right, today, you’ve helped 400,000 Black-owned businesses, representing 12% of all Black businesses in America? How did you do it?

3. You are one of the only Black authors with best-selling books on economics and business. Six to be exact. Tell me about your latest, Financial Literacy For All.

4. You founded the Financial Literacy for All Initiative with Walmart CEO Doug McMillion. Explain its mission.

5. You’ve said financial literacy is the civil rights issue of this generation. Explain why?

6. Your iHeart podcast series, “Straight Talk with John Hope Bryant,” has received over 100 million views, which led to a Facebook-sponsored episodic streaming series entitled, ‘Delivering the Memo,’ tell me about both.

7. You are Executive Chairman of The Promise Homes Company, the largest for-profit minority-controlled owner of institutional-quality, single-family residential rental homes in the U.S. In 2021, you recapitalized and sold Promise Homes into a new joint venture, successfully closing a $200M credit facility to grow the new housing joint venture. According to Black Enterprise, it was one of the largest capital raises by a Black-owned company in more than a decade.

8. Your work in financial empowerment has been recognized by five U.S. presidents and you’ve served as an advisor to three presidents from both parties. Your thoughts on the presidential election. Which candidate will be better for business?

9. You say that many people confuse making money with building wealth and that 70% of professional athletes are broke five years after retirement.

10. You spoke about how Boston Celtics’ Jaylen Brown should be the standard, why?

11. One episode of your show was called How to Become a Millionaire in Five Years. Give me 5 things everyone should be doing right now to reach that goal.

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