John Hope Bryant

Biography

Referred to as the Conscience of Capitalism by Ed Bastian, CEO of Delta Air Lines, Doug McMillon, President and CEO of Walmart and James Herbert, Chairman and CEO of First Republic Bank,  John Hope Bryant is an American entrepreneur, author, philanthropist, and prominent thought leader on financial inclusion, economic empowerment and financial dignity. Most recently Bryant was named one of Atlanta Business Chronicle’s “Most Influential Atlantans”, one of Georgia Trend Magazine’s  “Notable Georgiansand one of LinkedIn’s  “Top Voices” in 2020. Bryant was also recognized as one of the “Most Admired CEOs” in 2018, American Banker magazine 2016 Innovator of the Year”, Inc.’s “The World’s 10 Top CEOs” (honorable mention), and one of Time magazine’s “50 Leaders for the Future” in 1994.  In May, 2019, Bryant received an invitation to be a regular guest co-host for CNBC SquawkBox.

Bryant is the founder, chairman, and chief executive officer of Operation HOPE, Inc., the largest not- for-profit and best-in-class provider of financial literacy, financial inclusion and economic empowerment tools and services in the United States for youth and adults. Operation HOPE is acknowledged as one of (No. 34) “Atlanta’s 75 Largest Nonprofit Organizations”, and was included in the 2017-2018 Book of Lists—a publication of the Atlanta Business Chronicle. Bryant is also chairman and chief executive officer of Bryant Group Ventures and The Promise Homes Company, the largest for-profit minority-controlled owner of institutional-quality, single-family residential rental homes in the U.S.  Both Operation HOPE and The Promise Homes Company have experienced explosive growth under Bryant’s leadership, 553% from 2014-2018, and 303% from May 2017 to present, respectively. 

Five past U.S. presidents have recognized his work, and he has served as an advisor to three former sitting U.S. presidents, from both political parties. He is responsible for financial literacy becoming the policy of the U.S. federal government. In January 2016 Bryant became the only private American citizen to inspire the renaming of a building on the White House campus, when the U.S. Treasury Annex Building was renamed the Freedman’s Bank Building. The legacy of the Freedman’s Bank, founded by President Abraham Lincoln, has become the narrative of the work of Operation HOPE—to help all people in the ‘Invisible Class’ become fully integrated into our nation’s economy. In April 2017, a historical marker, also inspired by Bryant, to honor the final flight of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. to Memphis on April 3, 1968, was installed at the Memphis International Airport 49 years to the day that Eastern Flight 381 arrived from Atlanta. 

A member of the founding class of The Forum of Young Global Leaders, and founding member of Clinton Global Initiative, Bryant is a LinkedIn Influencer, contributor to Huffington Post, THRIVE Global and Black Enterprise, and a member of the World Economic Forum and OECD Expert Networks. He is one of three co-founders of Global Dignity.

His Facebook Live “Silver Rights” Series has received 40+ million views, and serves as an engaging platform to foster essential discussion in the digital age around financial inclusion and social uplift.  This series led directly to a Facebook sponsored episodic streaming series entitled ‘Delivering The Memo’, inspired by Bryant’s bestselling book, THE MEMO.

He has received hundreds of awards and citations for his work, including Oprah Winfrey’s Use Your Life Award, and the John Sherman Award for Excellence in Financial Education from the U.S. Treasury. Bryant received an honorable mention in Inc. magazine’s “The World’s 10 Top CEOs” article that spotlights global servant leaders as the visionaries behind some of the most successful organizations. Additionally, Operation HOPE and Bryant are a permanent part of the Smithsonian African-American Museum in DC. On April 15, 2019, the City of Atlanta City Council and the City of Atlanta (John’s home city) named April 15th John Hope Bryant Day.

Bryant is the author of Up from Nothing: The Untold Story of How We (All) Succeed (Publication Date Oct 6, 2020); bestsellers; The Memo: Five Rules for Your Economic Liberation (Berrett-Koehler, September 2017), How the Poor Can Save Capitalism: Rebuilding the Path to the Middle Class (Berrett-Koehler, 2014), and LOVE LEADERSHIP: The New Way to Lead in a Fear-Based World (Jossey-Bass, 2009). He is one of the only bestselling authors on economics and business leadership in the world today who happens to also be African-American.

“History never feels historic when you are sitting in it. It just feels like another day. But that
doesn’t mean that it isn’t so. It takes 25 years to look back at a moment, and to see it as what it
was. History in the making. Go create some.”
-John Hope Bryant

Philanthropy:

Bryant founded Operation HOPE, HOPE Global Forums, HOPE Global Initiatives, Operation HOPE, South Africa, Operation HOPE, Saudi Arabia, Operation HOPE, Morocco, Operation HOPE, United Arab Emirates, HOPE Inside, HOPE Business In A Box Academies, Banking on Our Future, Banking on Our Future, College Edition, HOPE Coalition America, DFRScore.org (Disaster Financial Recovery Score), EFFAK (Emergency Financial First Aid Kit for FEMA), Project 5117, 5 MILION KIDS Initiative, HOPE Corps, HOPE FILE (Fellows, Interns & Loaned Executives) Program, HOPE Research Institute.

Bryant co-founded Wikia-HOPE Global Money Initiative, Gallup-HOPE Index and Global Dignity.

Business:

Bryant created Bryant Group Ventures, Bryant Group Companies, Bryant Speaks, Bryant Group Real Estate, The Promise Homes Company, Bryant Group Africa LLC, Bryant Group Motorsports Group and Bryant Group Motorsports Academy. The Promise Homes Company is the largest minority controlled owners of institutional quality single-family residential rental property in the United States with a focus on working class and middle class communities.

Government:

Bryant directly inspired the creation of the City of Los Angeles loan fund (Administration of Mayor Tom Bradley), financial literacy as U.S. federal government policy, circa 2008, (George W. Bush Administration), U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Entrepreneurship Education  (George W.  Bush Administration), emergency financial disaster preparedness, response and recovery federal policy framework for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security/FEMA (George W. Bush Administration), commitments for 100+ local financial literacy councils across the U.S., and formalized the inclusion of FEMA into federal financial capability policy (a seat on the U.S. Financial Literacy & Education Commission for the Obama Administration).

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2017

  • January 2017, Bryant included in the Atlanta Business Chronicle’s 2016-2017 Book of Lists naming Atlanta’s 100 most influential people, as selected by the Chronicle’s editors.
  • June 2017, Bryant received the Andrew J. Young International Leadership Award for Social Impact
  • Published in September 2017, The Memo: Five Rules for Your Economic Liberation (Berrett-Koehler) reached #8 on Amazon’s Business & Money Best Sellers list within first two weeks of its release.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2016

  • December 2016, Bryant named 2016 “Innovator of the Year” by American Banker magazine, for developing the HOPE Inside model that promotes financial inclusion and generates business for banks.
  • October 2016, Bryant appointed to the Community Advisory Board of First Republic Bank.
  • May 2016, Bryant received an award for leadership appreciation from the Jeddah, Saudi Arabia Chapter of the Young Presidents’ Organization.
  • May 2016, Bryant received the Visions of Excellence Award at the Atlanta Business League’s 38th
  • Annual Chief Executive Officer Appreciation Luncheon.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2015

  • How The Poor Can Save Capitalism: Rebuilding The Path to the Middle Class (Barrett-Koehler) was ranked on the Top 25 List by 800-CEO-READ. 

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2014

  • Bryant was honored with the 2014 Georgia Minority Business Award.
  • Bryant is the only bestselling author on economics in the world today who happens to also be African-American.
  • How The Poor Can Save Capitalism: Rebuilding The Path to the Middle Class (Barrett-Koehler) was selected the Best Business Book for Economics & Finance for 2014 by 800-CEOREAD.
  • How The Poor Can Save Capitalism: Rebuilding The Path to the Middle Class (Barrett-Koehler) was selected the Best Business Book for Sustainability the 2014 by Business+Strategy.
  • How The Poor Can Save Capitalism: Rebuilding The Path to the Middle Class (Barrett-Koehler) was selected an Essence Magazine Top 10 Best Books for 2014.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2013

  • December 2013, Bryant was selected amongst 500 global voices to be included amongst the LinkedIn Influencers group. LinkedIn is the largest professional group in the world.
  • December 2013, Bryant received the Martin Luther King Jr. Legacy Leadership Award, recognizing his continuing efforts to further the advancement of under-resourced communities and on the 58th Anniversary of the Montgomery Bus Boycott. This special award was presented in Montgomery, Alabama by civil rights leader Ms. Doris Crenshaw and Dr. Bernice A. King of the Southern Youth Leadership Development Institute. November 2013, Bryant received the Entrepreneurship Hall of Fame Award for social entrepreneurship in Atlanta, Georgia.
  • October 2013, Bryant’s work in financial literacy was recognized by the Emirates Foundation in the United Arab Emirates. The new Esref Sah (Spend Wisely) Personal Finance curriculum, which features Bryant’s personal life story, likeness and image, is a UAE wide partnership between the Emirates Foundation and Operation HOPE that seeks to boost youth financial literacy skills and confidence, as well as encouraging personal financial dignity through role modeling.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2012

  • April 26th, 2012, Bryant rang the NYSE Euronext opening bell as a founding member of the board of directors for a new publicly traded company, Ares Commercial Real Estate Corporation (ticker symbol: ACRE), a division of $54 billion private equity firm Ares Capital Management.
  • April 24th 2012, Bryant led 500 delegates on 20th Anniversary “Chaos to Community” HOPE Opportunity Bus Tour marking the anniversary of both the Rodney King Riots and community recovery, as well as the 20th anniversary of Operation HOPE. The 10-chartered bus tour included C-Suite leaders from across the nation, and the White House, drawing positive international media attention to the area. Featured coverage included CNN International, Bloomberg Businessweek, USA Today, and the largest television stations in Japan and Brazil.
  • April 2012, Bryant agreed to serve as a Working Group Advisor to CGI America for the Clinton Global Initiative and former U.S. President William Jefferson Clinton.
  • On March 31, 2012, Bryant received the Leaders and Legends Award from the California Black Chamber of Commerce at their annual conference in Sacramento, California.
  • On January 19th, 2012, Bryant was appointed chairman of the new Subcommittee on the Underserved and Community Empowerment for the U.S. President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability, for President Barack Obama. Business leader John Rogers chairs the full Council for the President.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2011

  • On November 5, 2011, Operation HOPE and Bryant received the Marcus Garvey Bridge Builder in the Diaspora Award during the 16th Annual Caribbean Multi-National Business Conference in Jamaica.
  • On October 7, 2011, The Root named Bryant to its 2011, The Root 100 List of Influencers and Iconoclasts.
  • September, 2011, Bryant’s book LOVE LEADERSHIP: The New Way to Lead in a Fear-Based World (Jossey-Bass) once again made the Inc. Magazine-CEOREAD bestseller list, for the 14th time.
  • September, 2011, Bryant was featured in a New York Times front page BusinessDay, DealBook cover story on the state of philanthropy in America.
  • June-August, 2011, Bryant gave the closing keynote address for a first ever series of White House Urban Entrepreneurship Forums across the America.
  • June, 2011, Bryant gave the 87th Commencement Speech for the graduating class of CUNY/Queens College in New York City, and Bryant is subsequently awarded the CUNY/Queens College President’s Award (the college’s highest honor).
  • June 9th, 2011, Bryant was invited to write a guest article on the importance of financial literacy and urban entrepreneurship as policy, on the White House Blog.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2010

  • In December, 2010, Bryant’s book LOVE LEADERSHIP: The New Way to Lead in a Fear-Based World (Jossey-Bass) was acknowledged as one of the top 10 bestselling business books for all of 2010 for Inc. Magazine-CEOREAD, further establishing Bryant as the only African-American bestselling business author in the nation.
  • December 5, 2010, Operation HOPE and Bryant received the Andrew Goodman Foundation, Hidden Heroes Award for 2010 in Harlem, New York, presented by the brother of Andrew Goodman himself. The award and foundation is named after one of three brave young men who gave their lives in support of the civil rights movement of the 20th century in America.
  • December, 2010, Newsmax Magazine named Bryant, for his work at Operation HOPE, as one of their 2010 Heroes; a list that includes former U.S. President Bill Clinton and former U.S. President George H.W. Bush, First Lady Michelle Obama, amongst others.
  • December, 2010, Booker Rising, an organization established in honor of Booker T. Washington, named Bryant one of their Top 25 Bookeristas for 2010.
  • November, 2010, prominent African-American economist and president of Bennett College, Dr. Julianne Malveaux, honored the work of Bryant and Operation HOPE in her new book, “Surviving and Thriving: 365 Facts in Black Economic History.”
  • October 12th, 2010, in the backdrop of the global economic crisis and following the historic signing of the Financial Modernization Act, President Barack Obama appointed Mr. Bryant as a member of the U.S. President’s Advisory Council on Financial Capability.
  • October 8, 2010, The Root named Bryant, for his work at Operation HOPE, one of their Root 100 for 2010. The Root 100 recognizes emerging and established African-American leaders who are making extraordinary contributions.
  • June, 2010, Bryant signs joins Nobel Peace Prize recipient Archbishop-Emeritus Desmond Tutu for the signing of a landmark agreement between the Anglican Church of Southern Africa and Operation HOPE to reach, teach and empower the 2 million Anglican Youth with “A Course in Dignity,” financial literacy and entrepreneurship.
  • June, 2010, Bryant was invited to a featured speaker at the FORTUNE/TIME/CNN Global Forum 2010 in Cape Town, South Africa.
  • June, 2010, Bryant received the Champion of Financial Literacy award from the Urban Financial Services Coalition at its annual conference in Kansas City, MO.
  • April, 2010, Bryant received award for financial literacy leadership from the National Bankers Association in Washington, D.C. Other honorees included U.S. Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke.
  • April, 2010, LOVE LEADERSHIP reaches #15 on the Inc. Magazine/CEO Read business bestseller list, and is included amongst the top 25 business books for the 8th month.
  • March, 2010, Bryant invited to speak at the Economist (Magazine) Corporate Citizenship 2010 Conference, in Manhattan, New York.
  • February 8, 2010, Latvian President Valdis Zatlers received John Hope Bryant on behalf of the Republic of Latvia as the second speaker for the Latvia Presidential Speaker Series at Latvia University, on the topic of “The Economic Reset, Love Leadership in a fear-based world, and financial literacy as a new civil right.”
  • January 26-31, 2010, Bryant spoke on the program of the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2009

  • December, 2009, Bryant’s book LOVE LEADERSHIP: The New Way to Lead in a Fear-Based World, debuts amongst the “Top 25 Books to Read by Corporate America” for the 5th consecutive month by CEO READ.
  • November 17, 2009, Bryant selected to give the keynote speech on financial literacy and financial inclusion at an international conference convened by the Central Bank of Brazil, in Salvador, Brazil.
  • November 7, 2009, Bryant was selected to speak on the 5 Laws of Love Leadership and his life practicing these laws for Drucker Centennial Week at the Peter F. Drucker School of Management at Claremont College, Claremont, California, and on December 2, 2009, Bryant joined leadership guru Dr. Warren Bennis and authors Bill George and Jim Ellis as he spoke on Love Leadership at the USC Marshall School of Business.
  • October 27, 2009, Bryant selected to give keynote speech on the importance of financial literacy post crisis before the annual meeting of the American Bankers Association in Chicago, Illinois.
  • October 20, 2009, Bryant and Global Dignity co-founders HRH Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and Professor Pekka Himanen traveled to Oxford, England to kick-off the 2-nd annual GLOBAL DIGNITY DAY, which included Global Dignity Day sessions, taught by leaders with children, in 32 countries around the world on the same day, and on all six continents.
  • October 18, 2009, Bryant summoned to the historic Ebenezer Church in Atlanta, Georgia, where he spoke behind the pulpit of the late great Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. on the 5 Laws of Love Leadership and “a bold new movement from civil rights to silver rights, “on the occasion of their 49th Men’s Day.
  • October 3, 2009, Bryant spoke on the 5 Laws of Love Leadership before more than 10,000 members of City Harvest Church, the largest church in Singapore, and the second largest church in Asia.
  • October 1-3, 2009, Bryant received the SIP Forum Fellow Award by the Global Social Innovation Forum in Singapore. Other honorees included Sam Walton, chairman of Wal-Mart, Inc, USA, Calvin Chin, Co-founder and CEO of Qifang, China and Suhas Gopinath, Founder and CEO of Globals Inc.,
  • September 13th, 2009, Bryant was the opening keynote speaker for the 95th annual ICMA (International City Managers Association) Annual Conference in Montreal, Canada on the 5 Laws of Love Leadership.
  • September 9-11, 2009, Bryant was invited to speak at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Dalian, China, on “preventing an economic backlash post global crisis.”
  • August 24, 2009, Bryant’s new book LOVE LEADERSHIP: The New Way to Lead in a Fear-Based World” (Jossey-Bass), debuted at #8 on the CEO Reads Top 10 Best Seller List, and ranked #1 on the Amazon.com “Hottest New Books” List in August, 2009.
  • June 17, 2009, on the occasion of the HOPE Global Financial Literacy Summit, Bryant and Steve Bartlett, CEO of the FINANCIAL SERVICES ROUNDTABLE, signed a historic 10-point, 5-year “framework agreement” to fuse financial literacy into the business case for the financial services sector in the U.S. FSR members represent the 100 largest financial institutions in the U.S. and represent 70% of every dollar financed in America.
  • June 17, 2009, Bryant convened a first ever HOPE Global Financial Literacy Summit in Anacostia, attended by more than 850 delegates from 40 countries and 6 continents, and speakers include Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke, FDIC Chair Sheila Bair, White House Advisor Valerie Jarrett and civil rights icon Ambassador Andrew Young.
  • June, 2009, Bryant provided lead remarks on financial literacy before annual OECD Forum, Paris, France.
  • April 15, 2009, Bryant invited to be a discussion leader on entrepreneurship at the World Economic Forum regional meeting on Latin America, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.
  • March 20, 2009, Bryant invited to speak at the Nelson Mandela Promise of Leadership Conference, South Africa.
  • March 5, 2009, HR1325, a House of Representatives bill inspired by the work of Bryant, Operation HOPE and the U.S. President’s Advisory Council on Financial Literacy, was sponsored and formally introduced by Congresswoman Sheila Jackson-Lee, chairwoman of the House Children’s Caucus.
  • February 1, 2009, Bryant was asked to join Archbishop Desmond Tutu, and fellow Global Dignity co-founders HRH Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and Professor Pekka Himanen to provide closing remarks for the 2009 Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on the topic of dignity.
  • January 15, 2009, a Resolution was authored by Congresswoman Diane Watson to be introduced in the U.S. House of Representatives, signed by 20 members of Congress as original authors, recognizing the work of John Hope Bryant and Operation HOPE to raise awareness about the importance of financial and economic literacy in America.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2008

  • 2008, Bryant was appointed a member of the Board of Visitors for Xavier University.
  • September 26, 2008, Bryant was a featured panelist on the global CNBC special “What Wins Now – Passion, Power, Purpose or Profit?” at the World Economic Forum Annual Meeting of the New Champions in Tianjin, China.
  • September, 2008, Bryant, as chairman of the Committee on the Under-Served for the U.S. President’s Advisory Council on Financial Literacy, helped innovate and introduce into existence the first ever U.S. Small Business Administration Office of Entrepreneurship Education, and innovated the new President’s Council Financial Literacy Corps, a partnership with the USA Freedom Corps and the Corporation for National and Community Service, that provides a centralized resource for information on financial literacy volunteer opportunities across the country.
  • September, 2008, Bryant was selected to be a member of the Global Agenda Council for the World Economic Forum, Geneva, Switzerland, in the role as the Council expert on financial literacy.
  • August, 2008, Bryant was honored with a Visionary Leadership Award by the California Black Chamber of Commerce.
  • April, 2008, Bryant was featured in U.S. News & World Report and The Economist as the new vice chairman of the U.S. President’s Council on Financial Literacy.
  • April 1-11, 2008, Bryant was selected by the World Economic Forum and the Forum of Young Global Leaders for the Harvard University, John K. Kennedy School of Government, “Global Public Policy and Leadership for the 21st Century” executive education program in Boston, Massachusetts.
  • March 4, 2008, Bryant appointed to a 2-year term on the City of New York Advisory Board for the Office of Financial Empowerment within the City of New York Office of Consumer Affairs, and under New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s Administration.
  • January 23-27, 2008, John Hope Bryant participated as a Young Global Leader at the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
  • January, 2008, Bryant participated as an author in “Islam and the West: Annual Report on the State of Dialogue,” published by the World Economic Forum and issued at Davos, 2008.
  • January 22, 2008, the 43rd President of the United States, George W. Bush, appointed John Hope Bryant to serve a two-year term on the President’s Council on Financial Literacy, created that day by Executive Order at a ceremony at the White House.
  • January 12, 2008, John Hope Bryant served as the keynote speaker for the 40th annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. in Chicago, IL, speaking on Dr. King’s Chicago Campaign, and the coming 40th anniversary of Dr. King’s Poor People’s Campaign.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2007

  • November 3, 2007, Black Leadership Forum honored Bryant with its 30th Anniversary Lamplighter Award for Entrepreneurial Leadership, in Washington, D.C.
  • November, 2007, Bryant appointed to the Board of Visitors for Xavier University in New Orleans, Louisiana.
  • October 13, 2007, the Association of Black Women Physicians honored Bryant with its Humanitarian Award at its 26th Annual Charity Ball Benefit in Los Angeles, California.
  • September 4, 2007, former U.S. President Bill Clinton features John Hope Bryant and Operation HOPE in his best-selling book GIVING.
  • August 31, 2007, U.S. President George W. Bush announces the President’s Council on Financial Literacy, a direct outgrowth of an earlier meeting at the White House with John Hope Bryant and Operation HOPE.
  • May 18, 2007, John Hope Bryant joined Her Majesty Queen Rania of Jordan, along with Global Dignity co-founders HRH Crown Prince Haakon of Norway and Professor Pekka Himanen for Dignity Day, Jordan just prior to Dignity Day, Jordan. Bryant has also led Dignity Day sessions throughout the world, in the U.S., Canada, Turkey, India, Switzerland and Jordan.
  • April 27, 2007, John Hope Bryant featured by Time.com as one of 15 voices, 15 years after the worst riot in U.S. history.
  • April 25, 2007, John Hope Bryant joins U.S. President George W. Bush, Treasury Secretary Paulson, Education Secretary Spellings, HUD Secretary Jackson, U.S. Treasurer Cabral and 6 financial literacy experts in the Roosevelt Room of the White House for a first-ever Presidential meeting on financial literacy in America. The President called the meeting in response to a leadership request around financial literacy from Bryant and Operation HOPE.
  • April 23, 2007, John Hope Bryant and Ambassador Andrew Young co-chaired the 15th Anniversary HOPE Bankers Bus Tour, on the 15th anniversary of the Los Angeles riots and the founding of Operation HOPE. More than 500 leaders from government, community and the private sector participate.
  • February, 2007, John Hope Bryant was profiled by CNN in their “People You Should Know” program with Paula Zahn.
  • February, 2007, John Hope Bryant was featured on the cover of NV Magazine and Our Weekly Newspaper.
  • January 23 -28, 2007, John Hope Bryant attends and speaks before the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum as a Young Global Leader and co-leads Dignity Day, Davos session with fellow members of the Forum of Young Global Leaders.
  • January, 2007, John Hope Bryant and Operation HOPE featured in groundbreaking new documentary entitled RWANDA RISING by civil rights icon Ambassador Andrew Young debuted at the Pan-African Film Festival in Los Angeles.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2000-2006

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2006

  • November 2006, John Hope Bryant leads Dignity Day, Turkey and Dignity Day, India sessions with fellow members of the Forum of Young Global Leaders in Istanbul, Turkey and New Delhi, India, respectively.
  • On July 17, 2006, John Hope Bryant chaired the ”African Entrepreneurs” session of the VII Leon H. Sullivan Summit in Abuja, Nigeria, attending on behalf of HOPE Global Initiatives.
  • May 2006, John Hope Bryant was featured in HOPE Global Spokesman Ambassador Andrew Young’s critically acclaimed film Rwanda Rising.
  • On May 18, 2006, John Hope Bryant accepted the Business of the Year Award from the Black Business Association of Los Angeles.
  • On May 3, 2006, John Hope Bryant and District of Columbia Mayor Anthony Williams co-hosted the first ever Anacostia Economic Summit outside of Washington, D.C. The summit was a historic event marking the first time ever that the Chairman of the Federal Reserve (Ben Bernanke) and the President of the World Bank (Paul Wolfowitz) made a public policy speech in an American inner-city, low-wealth community.
  • On April 15, 2006, John Hope Bryant received the Vanguard (Man of the Year) Award from the Association of Black Harvard Women at Harvard University.
  • On March 31, 2006, John Hope Bryant and the work of Operation HOPE, in partnership with the New York Stock Exchange, was highlighted by President Bill Clinton at a special meeting of his Clinton Global Initiatives, where Mr. Bryant and Operation HOPE also became a member of Clinton Global Initiative
  • On March 16, 2006, John Hope Bryant received the Children’s Hero Award from the Say Yes to Children Network, a grassroots non-profit advocacy organization in South Los Angeles, California.
  • On February 27, 2006, John Hope Bryant and fellow Young Global Leaders HRH Crown Prince of Norway Haakon and Professor Pekka Himanen of Finland co-founded Global Dignity (www.globaldignity.org http://www.globaldignity.org), a global campaign to defend the right for every human being to lead a dignified and empowered life. Global Dignity is an autonomous, non-profit and non-partisan project linked to the 2020 process of the World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders.
  • On January 24-29, 2006, John Hope Bryant participated as a Young Global Leader and speaker before the Annual Meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland.
  • On January 14, 2006, Bryant received the Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Excellence in Leadership Award at the 38th Annual Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. Awards Dinner marking the 77th birthday of the late Dr. King, in Chicago, Illinois.
  • On January 11, 2006, John Hope Bryant and Jack McGuire, president of the American Red Cross, signed a national memorandum of agreement signaling a partnership that vertically integrates and brings together the critical response work of the American Red Cross, with the second-stage emergency economic disaster preparedness, response and recovery work of Operation HOPE’s HOPE Coalition America.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2005

  • On December 16, 2005, John Hope Bryant and U.S. Office of Thrift Supervision Director John Reich announced a provisional change in the federal Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) law, at the request of Mr. Bryant and Operation HOPE, allowing and authorizing “credit for emergency disaster financial counseling” under CRA for thrifts (OTS approved) and state and federally chartered banks (OCC and FDIC approved), for all victims of Hurricane Katrina and Rita, irrespective of income or location throughout the nation.
  • On December 8, 2005, John Hope Bryant and U.S. Small Business Administrator Hector Barreto announced in New Orleans, Louisiana Project Restore HOPE/Small Business to aid the small business community in recovery throughout the Gulf Coast region.
  • On November 18, 2005, John Hope Bryant, Ambassador Andrew Young and Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco announced Project Restore HOPE/Gulf Coast Recovery, to aid the victims of Hurricane Katrina in her state.
  • On October 4, 2005, John Hope Bryant announced Project Restore HOPE, inclusive of a national call center and partnerships with government, community and the private-sector, in response to Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, and launching the nation’s first second-stage emergency economic disaster response and recovery initiative for disaster victims.
  • In September, 2005, John Hope Bryant created and introduced America’s first Emergency Financial First Aid Kit (EFFAK), which is now FEMA federal government document #532, available to all Americans through the federal government at no charge.
  • September 15-17t, 2005, John Hope Bryant participated as a delegate of the inaugural meeting of the Clinton Global Initiative in New York City, New York.
  • June 24-27, 2005, John Hope Bryant participated as a newly appointed member, and as well spoke at the Inaugural Summit of the Forum of Young Global Leaders, Zermatt, Switzerland, an affiliate of the World Economic Forum.
  • On May 25, 2005, John Hope Bryant testified on financial literacy “best practices” before the U.S. Financial Literacy and Education Commission at the Department of the Treasury, where he introduced his proposal for a “silver rights movement” in America.
  • On May 20-22, 2005, John Hope Bryant attended the World Economic Forum regional meeting at the Dead Sea, Jordan (Middle East) as a Young Global Leader delegate for the World Economic Forum.
  • On April 12, 2005, John Hope Bryant, Ambassador Andrew Young, principal aide to the late Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr, and civil rights icon Dr. Dorothy Height, along with leaders from government, community and the private sector, co-hosted “A Day of HOPE with Andrew Young” at the Andrew Young School of Policy Studies at Georgia State University, Atlanta, Georgia, and called for the dawning of a new movement in 21st century America, “from civil rights to silver rights.” John Hope Bryant is the principal author of the Silver Rights Movement.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2004 

  • On October 18, 2004, the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland nominated John Hope Bryant as one of 237 young leaders selected from around the world to serve as a member of the Forum of Young Global Leaders, chaired by Her Majesty Queen Rania of Jordan. Bryant has subsequently attended and spoken at World Economic Forum regional meetings in Jordan, South Africa, Turkey, India and the Annual Meeting in Davos, Switzerland.
  • On September 27, 2004, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security and Citizen Corps publicly announced their endorsement and co-branding of the Emergency Financial First Aid Kit, or EFFAK, created and pioneered by John Hope Bryant and Operation HOPE.
  • On September 27, 2004, John Hope Bryant received the President’s Volunteer Service Award for Lifetime Achievement, in recognition of his charitable activities, and his contribution of more than 4,000 hours towards public service. This is the highest award possible for lifetime public service by the President.
  • On June 13, 2004, John Hope Bryant became a Presidential appointee when U.S. President George W. Bush appointed him to a 4-year term on the non-partisan U.S. Community Development Advisory Board for the CDFI Fund at the U.S. Department of the Treasury.
  • On June 1, 2004, John Hope Bryant served as a featured speaker on behalf of Operation HOPE, Inc. for the first ever-national conference of the White House Office of Faith-Based and Community-Based Initiatives, on two separate panels, namely “Community Development Successful Partnerships” and the “Foundations and Corporations Forum.”
  • On May 8, 2004, John Hope Bryant gave the commencement speech before the 132nd graduating class of Paul Quinn College of Dallas, Texas, where John Hope Bryant was awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Human Letters. 

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2003

  • In 2003, John Hope Bryant and Operation HOPE created the Emergency Financial First Aid Kit (EFFAK), now an official federal government document (FEMA document #532) available at no cost to all Americans.
  • In July, 2003, edition of Black Enterprise Magazine, John Hope Bryant featured as one of nine leaders for the African-American community for the 21st Century.
  • In June, 2003, John Hope Bryant was selected to testify before the U.S. House Committee on Financial Services in the first ever hearings on financial literacy and the un-banked.
  • On June 5, 2003, Federal Reserve Chairman Alan Greenspan, Operation HOPE Chairman John Hope Bryant and President J. Alfred Broaddus of the Federal Reserve Bank of Richmond, co-taught a Banking on Our Future financial literacy session at John Philip Sousa Middle School in South East Washington, D.C., highlighting the national importance of financial literacy in our economy and amongst the nation’s youth.
  • On May 7, 2003, John Hope Bryant was selected by Oprah Winfrey and the Oprah’s Angel Foundation to receive the Use Your Life Award, along with a $100,000 gift, donated to the work of Operation HOPE in Chicago, on the Oprah Winfrey Show.
  • April-May, 2003, John Hope Bryant conducted a national tour featuring Banking on Our Future program co-teaching sessions with presidents of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston, Chicago, St. Louis, Richmond, Dallas and Cleveland respectively, as well as the Chairman of the Federal Reserve System Chairman Alan Greenspan.
  • In January 2003, John Hope Bryant was selected by L.A. Focus Magazine as one of the 30 Most Influential Blacks in Los Angeles

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2002

  • On October 15, 2002, John Hope Bryant served as a participant in the White House Conference on Minority Homeownership.
  • August 2002, John Hope Bryant authored Banking on Our Future (Beacon Press), a book about youth and family financial literacy.
  • In June 2002, John Hope Bryant was selected by Savoy Magazine as part of their cover story on the Power 100, as one of three national community leaders to watch.
  • On April 29, 2002, John Hope Bryant hosted U.S. President George W. Bush, Jr. in South Central Los Angeles as his guest, on the occasion of the 10th anniversary of the worst urban civil unrest in U.S. history.
  • On April 25, 2002, John Hope Bryant announced a partnership between Operation HOPE and former U.S. President William Jefferson Clinton to educate every child in Harlem, New York in economic literacy.
  • On April 18, 2002, John Hope Bryant signed a memorandum of agreement with the FDIC on behalf of Operation HOPE, creating a partnership to educate the whole family in economic literacy.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2001 

  • In September 2001, in response to 9/11, John Hope Bryant founded HOPE Coalition America as America’s “economic Red Cross.” Today HCA is the lead national partner for FEMA and the Department of Homeland Security for emergency volunteer economic disaster preparedness, response and recovery. The American Red Cross is also a national partner with HCA.
  • HCA’s response to Hurricane Katrina alone provided emergency economic counseling and economic triage services to more than 50,000 Katrina victims, made $500,000 direct homeownership compassion grants, assisted Katrina victims in receiving more than $12 million in federal tax refunds and EITC payments, and recruited in excess of 1,500 professional HOPE Corps volunteers to assist victims.
  • On July 23, 2001, John Hope Bryant was assigned a special consultancy with UNCTAD, Geneva, Switzerland, to help develop a unique and vital global micro-finance marketplace.
  • On June 20, 2001, John Hope Bryant was selected by the Bush Administration to serve as a panel participant for the U.S. Labor Department — 21st Century Workforce Summit, held in Washington, DC.
  • On May 18, 2001, John Hope Bryant was selected by the United Nations to serve as a delegate, speaker and co-leader of an official State of California delegation to the UNCTAD III Global Conference on Least Developed Countries, held in Brussels, Belgium.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 2000 

  • On June 29, 2000, John Hope Bryant was selected to participate as a forum chairman for the White House Community Empowerment Conference held in Columbus, Ohio.
  • On April 5, 2000, John Hope Bryant was amongst a select group of leaders from the fields of business, technology, education and the non-profit arena asked to join President Clinton at the White House Conference on the New Economy.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 1992-1999

 

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 1999 

  • In October 1999 John Hope Bryant was selected by the Los Angeles Times as one the Top 103 Most Influential People (in Los Angeles).
  • On June 21, 1999, John Hope Bryant served as a panel participant with then U.S. Vice President Al Gore on the occasion of Family Reunion 8: Family and Community (Policy) Conference, in Nashville, Tennessee.
  • In June 1999, John Hope Bryant was appointed a consultant and special advisor to UNCTAD, Geneva, Switzerland.
  • In May of 1999, at the invitation of the Clinton Administration, John Hope Bryant served as a delegate on the U.S. Presidential Mission to the V African-African American Summit in Accra, Ghana, as well as a Summit speaker.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 1998

 

  • In 1998, John Hope Bryant participated as a delegate, speaker, and a key member of the planning group for the UNCTAD Partners for Development Summit; Tri-Partite Meeting on Micro-finance, as hosted by the United Nations Conference on Trade and Development, and held November 9-10, 1998, Lyon, France.
  • On May 4, 1998, John Hope Bryant became the first African-American in history to be knighted by German nobility and the royal House of Lippe.
  • In May 1998, John Hope Bryant was appointed the first-ever United Nations Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD) Goodwill Ambassador for Partners for Development to the United States of America.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 1997 

  • In 1997, John Hope Bryant participated as a delegate and panel participant in the IV African-African American Summit, focused on economics, health and education, and founded by Dr. Leon H. Sullivan, in Johannesburg, South Africa, and Harare, Zimbabwe.
  • In May 1997, John Hope Bryant was selected by Town & Country Magazine as one of the 25 individuals in the country that represented “The New Breed of Philanthropic Leaders” in America.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 1996 

  • In April 1996, John Hope Bryant founded Banking on Our Future, today the leading urban delivery system for financial literacy education across America. HOPE has educated more than 200,000 low-wealth youth in financial literacy to date. Operational in more than 700 schools and community-based organizations throughout the United States, Banking on Our Future is fueled by more than 3,000 professional HOPE Corps volunteers from banking, credit unions and financial services.
  • On March 18, 1996, John Hope Bryant was selected by the Los Angeles Business Journal as one their “40 Under Forty”.
  • In January 1996, John Hope Bryant was selected by Swing Magazine as One of the 30 Most Powerful Twentysomethings in America.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 1995

  • In August, 1995, John Hope Bryant co-founded and subsequently served as the first president of The New Leaders organization, a group comprised principally of African-American professionals in Los Angeles, inspired by the life and legacy of former Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley to “do something” for their community.
  • In August, 1995, John Hope Bryant was selected by Black Enterprise Magazine as One of 25 Future Leaders to Watch.
  • In June of 1995, United States President Bill Clinton invited John Hope Bryant to be a panel participant in the White House Pacific Rim Economic Conference, held in Portland, Oregon.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 1994 

  • In 1994, John Hope Bryant founded the first in a national network of inner-city banking centers, called HOPE Centers, serving low-wealth communities. Located nationwide and soon Harlem, New York, HOPE Centers empower individuals by converting check cashing customers into banking customers, renters into homeowners, small business dreamers into small business owners, minimum wage workers into living wage workers, and the economically uneducated into the financially literate. In 2002, HOPE became the first non-profit in history to build a bank branch and sell it to a bank.
  • John Hope Bryant participated in the 19th Japanese External Trade Organization, Export to Japan Program, as a guest of the Japanese Government.

Chronological Bryant Career Highlights 1992

  • On May 4, 1992, immediately following the worst urban riot and civil unrest in U.S. history, the Rodney King Riots of April 29, 1992, and inspired by his pastor and spiritual father the Reverend Dr. Cecil “Chip” Murray, John Hope Bryant founded Operation HOPE as America’s first non-profit social investment banking organization. HOPE was founded as a partnership between government, community and the private sector, or the three-legged stool of HOPE.
  • HOPE was organized in the backdrop of a Bryant organized Bankers Bus Tour, which took 18 leaders from government, community but most of all the private sector on a tour of the areas impacted by the riots, under the theory “you don’t lend where you have never been.” Bryant understood that the principle problem following the riots was not a sense of love nor hate, but rather indifference. The HOPE Bankers Bus Tour sought to bridge that sense of difference with a sense of enlightened self-interest and overall opportunity. These are the values that continued to drive HOPE in years to follow.
  • The first year budget of Operation HOPE in 1992 was $61,000.00, wholly consisting of an SBA 7J grant made possible at the request of a Democratic mayor (the late Los Angeles Mayor Tom Bradley) and a Republican president (President George H.W. Bush). With this act Operation HOPE was born of a non-partisan agenda to empower the poor, and to include everyone.

Pin It on Pinterest