Feature Story from 2023
Australian evangelist and motivational speaker Nick Vujicic is planning to open his own bank early this year. It will target Christian clients, especially those who have have been rejected by secular banks because of their beliefs.
Pro-Life Bank’s mission will be to honour God first, serving people, and always choosing to support ALL life. It will be based in Dallas, Texas and be available to people around the world as an online, for-profit bank, that invests half its earnings in Christian organisations.
CBN News reports that Nick Vujicic began exploring the idea five years ago, after he was cancelled by his previous bank for supporting the pro-life cause. He said it kicked him out with no warning, freezing all his cards and accounts.
The Christian Post reports nearly a third of American Christians have considered switching banks because of conflicts over their values and beliefs. A Christian Community Credit Union (CCCU) survey of 1300 professed Christians found that as customers of faith are being increasingly discriminated against by the major banks, more of them are choosing to bank with companies that better reflect their Biblical worldview.
More than 30% said they had thought about taking their banking business elsewhere during the past year in response to mounting cases of some of America’s biggest banks cancelling the accounts of religious customers. Two-thirds of all respondents said they were “excited or curious” about potentially banking with a Christian institution. Half believed it’s “more important than ever” for their chosen bank to reflect their values.
CCCU president and chief executive Blair Korschun said the survey’s responses could signal the beginning of a major bank exodus. He said that was especially the case when combined with what he called the “predatory practices of certain big banks.”
“Over 60% of Christians care deeply about managing their finances Biblically, to honour God. We are excited to provide a financial institution that aligns with their values and invests in their communities,” Mr. Korschun proclaimed.
“It’s not just CCCU. Other banks are offering statements of faith along with their lending and credit programs including America’s Christian Credit Union which is described on its website as a “Christian institution committed to the cause of Christ.”
Cass Commercial Bank caters to faith-based and nonprofit customers in order to help them “build, grow and renovate places of worship” and even offers digital giving and church management software solutions for ministries of all sizes.
In recent years, JPMorgan Chase Bank cancelled the account of a religious nonprofit led by former Senator and US Ambassador Sam Brownback. That prompted 19 Republican state attorneys general to write a letter to CEO Jamie Dimon, calling on JPMorgan Chase to “stop its religious and politically biased discrimination and start living up to its commitment to an inclusive society where everyone feels welcomed, equal, and included.”
Bank of America decided in April to abruptly cancel the bank account for Indigenous Advance Ministries, an international ministry that had opened its account in 2015. “National banks like Bank of America receive a host of benefits from the American taxpayer so that they can serve the public. If Bank of America can’t restrain itself from ideological decision-making, it’s time for public officials to hold it accountable,” wrote Jeremy Tedesco, senior counsel for Christian legal advocates Alliance Defending Freedom.
