Fearless Fund Ends Grant Program In Settlement, But CEO Highlights Big-Picture Win

According to reports, Fearless Fund, a venture capitalist firm that invests in women entrepreneurs of color, has settled the discrimination lawsuit over its grant program that helps Black women entrepreneurs with funding. The fund will no longer operate in its capacity.

The American Alliance for Equal Rights (AAER) is behind the lawsuit brought against the Fearless Fund. The organization claimed that the fund’s Fearless Strivers Grant Contest was discriminatory.

While the news was disappointing news for advocates of diversity and inclusion and supporters of the Fearless Fund, founders have stated that this is not a loss, and the battle is far from over in ensuring that Black women entrepreneurs are able to get the money and resources they need to succeed.

Check out CEO Arian Simone’s full response, from the release on social media, below:

1. This is a WIN and positive outcome for the Fearless Fund and our community.

2.The U.S. federal court of appeals stopped the Fearless Strivers grant program for Black women on June 3rd ruling suggesting we were in violation of the law. This program has not been operating since it entered the appeals process back in September 2023 and it was at its conclusion of the grant program when the court case began August 2023, it was designed to award 6 people in one year and it was at its end when the case began.

3.We strategically avoided a Supreme Court ruling (the deadline to appeal our appeal has passed) because a ruling not in our favor at the Supreme Court would’ve ended minority based funding across the country and that would not be wise, we have already seen the Supreme Court ruling for the colleges end affirmative action for all colleges in schools and admissions.

4. Elections have consequences, we have had 3 federal rulings in this process where 4 Trump appointed judges ruled against us, 2 Clinton and 1 Obama appointed judges ruled for us. The writing is on the wall of who wants this work to continue and who does not. Be sure to vote November 5th!

5. This work is important because the statistics for the underfunded are overwhelming and this is why we have invested millions of dollars and awarded grants to over 500.

6. Any false narrative floating that anyone is claiming we are not moving forward at the Fearless Fund is not true, what is true is that we are proud to announce our new debt fund (our loan program is live on our website) for under resourced entrepreneurs- male and female! 

7. The one grant program the U.S. appeals courts stopped was funding 6 entrepreneurs, this new program will touch over 3000 entrepreneurs, that sounds like a WIN to me. 

WE ARE STILL FUNDING, WE ARE STILL FEARLESS!