Darryl Finkton, Jr. is a hedge fund manager turned community organizer. Raised in a poor black family in Indianapolis, Indiana, Darryl went on to graduate from Harvard College and Oxford University, where he studied as a Rhodes Scholar. In his new book End Poverty. Make Trillions, Darryl shares how he rose from rags to riches and searched for a way to end poverty. In 2021 he left his job as a hedge fund partner to promote the adoption of a universal basic income to end poverty in the U.S. with the help of venture dollars via his EPMT (End Poverty. Make Trillions.) fund, and then came up with a proposal to ensure everyone has an opportunity to generate wealth.
He calls his proposal “The Seed Money Act”. It would establish an unconditional, permanent, regular grant to every US household, set to an amount that’s equal to the federal poverty guidelines. “For example, for a single-person household in 2020, the amount would’ve been $1,063.33 per month.” Darryl also helped found a pilot basic income project in which recipients tell their own stories on a YouTube channel, Basic Income Works. He says “I want that program to be about the participants so I don’t want to promote the details of the pilot, just provide a platform for people to tell their stories.”
I welcome a zoom call! I am a co-founder of the Democracy Earth Foundation, with primary goal to deliver UBI globally via blockchains and digital currencies.
This story calls for a rigorous analysis. Even if it’s just to prevent people from going into the woods, being steered in it, with no real chance of prosperity. The truth should be told, the crux is in the opportunity. The basic income I’m looking at is the security of income. From that certainty come opportunities that may or may not be used. Becoming a multimillionaire is not an option (like those traded on the stock market). It’s about certainty for a decent life.
$1,063.33 a month is Poverty!!!! Keep the money I’d rather work.
Susan, you are absolutely right. $1066.33 a month UBI is not only poverty but its also cementing poverty. The concept of UBI is like a work in process. Here is what I wish to propose. JFK I think it was, ask not what Nation (the Fellow citizens) can do for you, tell what can you do for the Nation. Let’s try thinking of one but also the other.
Here is my idea for Daryl Finkton and proponents of UBI. I am proposing to initiate a debate on CASHIN. This is Caring And Sharing Income. Nation cares for every Resident by a crediting a National Seed Income and the Residents for one day a week perform one of zillions of chores for the good of the Nation … being a mother, a tutor, a care work, a hazard fighter. Take care of whatever. Be a volunteer with responsibility once every week. Nation needs us all.
Under CASHIN, the National Seed Income is a function of GDP.
Sounds like a good idea. But I think most people are unwilling to do that because nothing is in it for them. People don’t know how to be charitable. You’d have to worry about being robbed or worse. Do all these people pass background checks?
A lot of wealthy people don’t want the end of poverty. It is a terrible inconvenience for them, their companies and some business and economic models… we can spent thousands of hours talking about it. But I encourage you to start doing something now…I’m taking a portion of my paycheck and directly contact people in need around the world to help them. No burocracy ( NGO’s), no delay…just attack the problem directly…at the end of the day you will be helping a lot of families around the world and make a lot of friends also…
This sounds really great : ) What a great initiative. It will really make a difference. Go Darryl Finkto Jr. No-one would know better than someone who has made the journey from ‘rags to riches’. And this basic income does not mean that you can’t work and earn money as well.