Sekou Kaalund
@sekouk
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Sekou Kaalund is a Managing Director at JPMorgan Chase and Head of Consumer Banking for the Northeast Division. In this role, Kaalund oversees 1000 branches in five regions with 10,000 employees and over $315 billion in deposits and investments. Prior this role, Kaalund launched and was the Head of Advancing Black Pathways (“ABP”), a JPMorgan Chase program created to help Black individuals, families and businesses achieve sustained economic success. Kaalund set bold goals, including hiring 4,000 black students in 5 years, reaching 40% of the goal in less than two years. During his tenure, Kaalund deepened relationships with historically Black Colleges and Universities, and even launched a Hardship Fund to help keep financially distressed students in school, which became critical during COVID19. He also launched Advancing Black Entrepreneurs, a program to provide access to capital and insights for Black businesses. Kaalund’s success in building ABP led to the firm’s historic $30 billion commitment to closing the racial wealth gap. Kaalund has held several leadership positions within J.P. Morgan’s Corporate and Investment Bank —including as Head of U.S. Pension Fund Coverage and as a senior relationship manager for some of the firm’s largest clients. He joined J.P. Morgan in 2007 as Managing Director and Global Head of Sales for Private Equity and Real Estate Fund Services. Kaalund previously held leadership roles at Citi and served as a Commission Bank Examiner at the Federal Reserve Bank of New York. Kaalund currently serves on the board of INROADS, The Public Policy & International Affairs Program, and is a Cabinet Member of Black Entrepreneurs NYC (NYC Department of Small Business Services initiative). He has previously served as a trustee for Duke University’s School of Public Policy, New York City Parks Foundation, and the Council of Urban Professionals. His civic contribution and corporate success have been recognized in several organizations – including in Ebony Magazine’s 2020 Power 100 list for the “Titans of Industry” category and Face2Face Africa’s 2019 “30 Black Stars List.” Kaalund has been featured in numerous publications for his work, including BBC, Forbes, NBC, CNBC, Black Enterprise, Essence, and more. Kaalund earned a Master’s of Public Policy from Duke University and Bachelor’s from Hampden-Sydney College.