Native Finance Origins

Native nations were regarded as sovereign ever since the first contact with Europeans. Yet, even with their stringent independence, their problems never faltered; rather, they proliferated. From housing crises to inaccessible opportunities and access to systematically-provided resources, many Native Americans struggle day-to-day with thriving. Their distrust for the American system grew as time passed by. Equally as such, the disconnect between American society and Native American tribes created a rift so great that any help that reached out was seen as foolish, if not miscreant. After all, many—if not all—of the problems the tribes face stem from historical injustices and a distinct practice society relies on: Finance. In 2003, the precursor for Native Finance began with Cynthia Tam, a Certified Financial Planner(™). In her practice, she has helped tribal community members resolve problems from tax, to retirement savings and insurance. While teaching financial education to tribal youth, she saw the need to broadly expand the access of knowledge to all in a scalable and sustainable way. In 2018, she petitioned for a 501(c)3 status to form the Native Finance Development Corporation. ​ In the years after, Tam spoke with hundreds of community members about their personal finance journey, and found a prevalence of bank deserts on tribal lands, where community members do not have reliable access to banking and financial services. Conversations with leaders and executives, including James M. “Potts” Hill, Sr., the Vice Chairman and Tribal Administrator of the La Posta tribe, explored a non-profit corporation that incorporates and appeals to Native’s traditions, culture, and Seven Generation Principle, all while cultivating their knowledge and preparation for handling money, assets and their futures. ​ But to find out more about the belief behind Native Finance, we turned to our founding members and asked them why they became involved.