Jordan Miller knows about challenges. From his service in the Air Force as a young man to his incredibly successful career as a banking executive, Miller has tackled every challenge and turned it into an opportunity for excellence. Now, he is embarking on his biggest challenge yet: founding and opening the only Black-owned bank in Ohio and just the eighteenth Black-owned bank in the nation.
“Service to the community and giving back is part of my DNA,” Miller said. “I always thought, if there’s something to be done in the community, then who’s going to do it? And, if I’m not going to do it, who is?”
The idea for Miller’s new venture, Adelphi Bank, started in 2020 when Miller took a call from his friend, Franklin County Commissioner Kevin Boyce. After George Floyd’s murder and during the height of the pandemic, Boyce, Miller, and several other prominent Black Columbus leaders saw a need in Central Ohio to help minority communities access capital and wealth-building opportunities. When they decided to open a bank to meet those needs, Miller knew it would be challenging.
“We will be the first African American bank to start in well over 20 years,” Miller said.
Since that initial conversation, Miller and his partners have been working diligently to get Adelphi Bank off the ground. The team had to gain approval from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) and the Ohio Department of Financial Institutions, raise an extraordinary amount of capital, construct the bank building, and hire a team. The Columbus community has been behind the effort all the way.
“We have a lot of community support. The business community has been great,” Miller said. “I’ve talked to a lot of African American business owners, a lot of African American families, and some leaders of nonprofit organizations, and they’re all excited.”
The time commitment to opening Adelphi Bank has been substantial. Still, Miller plans to continue his service on several nonprofit boards, including the Ohio Access to Justice Foundation’s Board of Directors. The Foundation’s commitment to helping low-income Ohioans access civil legal services and improving diversity, equity, and inclusion in Ohio’s civil justice system dovetails nicely with Miller’s dedication to the community and his vision for Adelphi Bank.
Adelphi Bank will open in the King-Lincoln Bronzeville neighborhood in Columbus later this year or early next, and when it does, Miller will add CEO to his lengthy resume. While he had no plans to open a bank when he retired from Fifth Third Bank in 2019, his lifetime of experiences and his tendency to embrace a challenge has led to this moment.
“I’m excited that we’re going to make a difference in this community more than anything else,” he said. “I think we can do that.”
The Ohio Access to Justice Foundation’s Board of Directors serves from around the state and is committed to improving access to justice. Meet the Board.