Fred Banyon, a member of the national advisory council of the Project 21 black leadership network, has been a stockbroker since 1989. In his various financial services jobs, he has overseen tens of millions of dollars in client assets, advised clients on asset management issues related to savings for education, insurance and retirement and has also been responsible for approving, monitoring and setting policy for stock options trading. He is currently a registered representative and registered options principal for the American Trust Investment Service in Chicago, Illinois, where he has worked since 2011.
Fred is a strong advocate of raising the financial literacy of America’s youth — particularly those living in inner-city communities. Since 2005, he has donated his free time to lecture students and parents about the importance of being financially savvy consumers and how to incorporate financial investment into a strategy to improve their overall standard of living. As part of this mission, he has led student tours of the Chicago Board of Exchange, Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago and private asset management businesses. He has taught courses in financial literacy and stock market basics at Harold Washington College and Truman College in Chicago as well as worked with teachers at the South Shore International College Preparatory High School, Whitney M. Young Magnet High School, Percy Julian Middle School and the Providence St. Mel School. In 2009, Fred collaborated with the Center for Economic Progress to present a month-long financial literacy workshop with the assistance of Jesse Jackson’s Rainbow Push Coalition.
Publications by Fred Banyon:
Hands Off: Don’t Raid Your Retirement Accounts! (March 2015)
Fiscal Literacy Needed to Avoid Poverty Traps (February 2015)
Low Gas Prices Could Ultimately Hurt U.S. Economy (January 2015)