Welcome to Inner City Press’ Bank Beat. We aim to scrutinize the industry, from high to low. Our other Reporters cover Community Reinvestment, the Federal Reserve, and other beats. ICP has published a (double) book about the Bank Beat-relevant topic of predatory lending - click here for sample chapters, an interactive map, and ordering information. The Washington Post of March 15, 2004, calls Predatory Bender: America in the Aughts "the first novel about predatory lending;" the London Times of April 15, 2004, "A Novel Approach," said it "has a cast of colorful characters." See also, "City Lit: Roman a Klepto [Review of 'Predatory Bender']," by Matt Pacenza, City Limits, Sept.-Oct. 2004. The Pittsburgh City Paper says the 100-page afterword makes the "indispensable point that predatory lending is now being aggressively exported to the rest of the globe." Click here for that review; click here to Search This Site. Click here for Inner City Press' weekday news reports, from the United Nations and elsewhere, which include bank-related topics.
Click here for Inner City Press' weekday news reports, from the United Nations and elsewhere. Click here for a recent BBC piece on Inner City Press' reporting from the United Nations. New: Follow us on TWITTER BloggingHeads.tv Click for March 1, 2011 BloggingHeads.tv re Libya, Sri Lanka, UN Corruption by Inner City Press. Until next time, for or with more information, contact us.
April
19, 2021
Chase Bank Sues In SDNY Seeking A Deposition Citing A Case in New Jersey
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- ESPN
SDNY
COURTHOUSE, April 14 – Chase Bank has sued M.
Harvey Rephen & Associates, seeking to
depose a corporate
representative.
On
April 14, U.S. District Court for the Southern
District of New York Judge Gregory H. Woods held
a proceeding. Inner City Press covered it.
Judge Woods asked about a related case in New
Jersey federal court, Malk Lasry v. JP Morgan
Chase & Co., No. 3:18-cv-09776-PGS-DEA
(D.N.J.). Moneys have been restrained for a
year. The restraining orders remain in place.
April
12, 2021
In Citibank Wire Transfer Case Money Did Not Have To Be Returned Now Citi Asks For Stay
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Song Podcast
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- ESPN
SDNY
COURTHOUSE, April 9 – As Citibank tries to
recoup the money it wired out on August 11,
2020, the virtual / Zoom trial began on December
9 before U.S. District Court for the Southern
District of New York Judge Jesse M. Furman.
Inner City Press reported daily on the trial,
below.
On
February 16, Judge Furman ruled that the
Defendants can keep the money, see below.
On
April 9, Judge Furman held an oral argument on
Citi's motion for an injunction pending appeal:
And
they's back! Citibank, which lost at trial on
its "$900 million mistaken wire" on the Revlon
loan, is now asking SDNY Judge
Furman to freeze the funds pending their appeal.
Problem
for Citibank: Judge Furman would have to find
Citi has a likelihood of success in getting his
decision after trial reversed. Citi's lawyer
says they are moving fast on the appeal. Judge
Furman: But that doesn't mean the Circuit will
act with dispatch
Judge
Furman asked, if he were to grant the
injunction, what kind of a bond Citi would put
up. Citi's lawyer: Citi is one of the most
respected financial firms in the world.
[Inner
City Press: Ever heard of CitiFinancial? Sandy
Weill?]
Inner
City Press will continue to follow this.
April
5, 2021
Woman Sues US Bank For Role In Misuse Of Her Debit Card Amid COVID Pandemic
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- ESPN
SDNY
COURTHOUSE, April 3 – Lorenza Collins
says here U.S. Bank prepaid payroll card was
misused for $980, and that U.S. Bank did nothing
to make her whole.
She
sued.
In
the complaint filed on April 2 in the U.S.
District Court for the Southern District of New
York and found there that day by Inner City
Press, Collins emphasizes that U.S. Bank's abuse
happened at the high of the COVID-19 pandemic,
and that her CFPB complaint accomplished
nothing.
She
demands that U.S. Bank comply with the
Electronic Fund Transfer Act and pay damages.
March
29, 2021
Flagstar Bank Blamed Regulators For Golden Parachute Delay Now Quietly Settles It
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- ESPN
SDNY
COURTHOUSE, March 25 – Joseph P.
Campanelli was apparently an officer of Flagstar
Bank, who wants his golden parachute payments
but is being told he can only get them if the
Federal Reserve and FDIC (and, it seems, the
Office of the Comptroller of the Currency) sign
off.
On
October 30 U.S. District Court for the Southern
District of New York Judge Paul A. Engelmayer,
to whom the case was assigned in August 2019,
held a proceeding. Inner City Press covered
it.
In the proceeding Judge Engelmayer to his credit
told counsel for Flagstar, which was once
referred to as Flagstaff like in Arizona, that
they could not hide behind the regulators by
citing "best efforts" language in the agreement.
The difficult is that even hours after the open
proceeding, the complaint of PACER still says,
"You do not have permission to view this
document."
Now
on March 25, this: "ORDER terminating [64]
Letter Motion to Stay re: [64] JOINT LETTER
MOTION to Stay re: [63] Scheduling Order,,,
addressed to Judge Paul A. Engelmayer from Julia
M. Jordan and Martin F. Gaynor III dated March
24, 2021. The Court commends counsel on
resolving this dispute. The Court today will
issue a "60-day order" dismissing the case while
giving counsel 60 days to move to reopen it if
settlement is not finalized. SO ORDERED. (Signed
by Judge Paul A. Engelmayer on 3/25/2021)."
March
22, 2021
Goldman Sachs Was Sued For Money Laundering Citing Dodd Frank For Arbitration
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- ESPN
SDNY
COURTHOUSE, March 18 – Christopher Rollins has
said Goldman Sachs for retaliating against him
after he blew the whistle on Goldman's
"concealment of anti-money laundering compliance
failures associated with a notorious European
businessman [with a] 200-foot superyacht in the
Mediterranean Sea."
On March 18, U.S. District Court for the
Southern District of New York Judge Edgardo
Ramos held a proceeding. Inner City Press
covered it.
The
case, citing the Dodd-Frank Act, was forced to
arbitation. Now defendants' motion is due
April 8 with Rollins' cross-motion due April 29.
March
15, 2021
IMF Answers on Sri Lanka and Ukraine As Inner City Press Asks of JOH
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Video
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- ESPN
SDNY
COURTHOUSE, March 11 – When the
International Monetary Fund held its biweekly
embargoed press briefing on March 11, Inner City
Press asked about Sri Lanka, Honduras and
Ukraine. Spokesperson Gerry Rice responded
on each, though he perhaps understandably said
the IMF does not comment on judicial
proceedings.
On
Sri Lanka, Inner City Press asked, "On Sri
Lanka, what is the IMF's comment and view on the
country's decision to go with a $1.5 billion
currency swap with China, with some saying it is
an alternative to the IMF?"
Spokesperson Rice described the IMF's recent
programs with Sri Lanka, including regarding
COVID-19. Video and transcript coming.
On
Ukraine, Inner City Press asked "On Ukraine,
what is the IMF's comment and view on the deputy
head of Ukraine's central bank Kateryna Rozhkova
today accusing her own press office of trying to
censor comments she gave to a local media outlet
that cast fresh doubt on the central bank's
independence and decision-making process?"
Spokesperson Rice said the IMF takes central
bank independence very seriously, and tied it to
review of Ukraine program(s).
In a question Inner City Press, given what it
has reported on for the past three days was
compelled to ask, it sent and asked, "On
Honduras, given mounting evidence including in
the trial of Geovanny Fuentes-Ramirez that high
government officials are implicated in
narco-trafficking, what are the IMF's comments
on current programs and safeguards in place?"
As noted, Spokesperson Rice said that IMF does
not comment on (pending) judicial proceedings.
At least he took the question.
March
8, 2021
Bank Audi of Lebanon Accused of Keeping $17 Million Now Questions of Correspondent Banks
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- ESPN
SDNY
COURTHOUSE, March 3 – Patricia Raad says
she placed $17 million with Lebanon's Bank Audi
and now they won't give her the money back.
She has sued.
Raad
and two relatives filed in New York State court,
but Bank Audi on December 31 removed the case to
the U.S. District Court for the Southern
District of New York, in the docket of which
Inner City Press found it.
DLA
Piper, in the Corporate Disclosure Statement it
filed, said Bank Audi S.A.L. does not have a
corporate parent, and that no publicly traded
company owns ten percent of more of Bank Audi
S.A.L.'s comment stock.
Its Jeffrey D. Rotenberg recounts in a
declaration that on December 18 a virtual
hearing was held before Judstic Ostanger, and
that also present were counsel for JPMorgan
Chase, Citibank, Bank of New York Mellon and
Standard Chartered.
On March 3, SDNY Magistrate Judge Ona T. Wang
held a proceeding. Inner City Press covered it.
The plaintiffs want to attach funds.
Judge Wang asked about it, and about
correspondent banks.
March
1, 2021
After Eaze ex-CEO Pled Guilty Before Wirecard Linked Akhavan Trial Circle Subpoena OKed
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- The
Source
SDNY
COURTHOUSE, Feb 22 – Hamid "Ray" Akhavan and
Ruben Weigand are charged with a "scheme to
deceive US banks into processing in excess of
$100 million for marijuana products."
On
January 7, Akhavan and Weigand had a proceeding
before U.S. District Court for the Southern
District of New York Judge Jed S. Rakoff,
covered by Inner City Press, below. Their
trial starts March 1 - with Eaze's James
Patterson cooperating, see below.
Now Judge Rakoff has mostly allowed the
defendants' subpoena to Circle about Eaze,
limiting it in some ways and by time: "Weigand
hired a private investigator to initiate a
marijuana purchase on the Eaze platform via
Circle. See Larsen Decl., ECF No. 142. Based
upon that investigator’s findings and the other
limited evidence before the Court, there is
reason to believe that Circle charges a
customer’s debit or credit card for USD Coin in
the amount of the marijuana purchase; credits
Eaze for the purchase, nominally in USD Coin;
converts that USD Coin back into U.S. dollars;
and transfers those dollars into Eaze’s account.
In essence, Circle offers Eaze USD Coin as a fig
leaf separating the issuing bank from Eaze. But
-- and here is defendants’ key allegation --
Circle does not hide what it is doing from the
banks. When Weigand’s private investigator
conducted a test buy, her credit card statement
included the word “Eaze” in the description of
the charge. The private investigator’s bank had
in its possession information tending to show
that this charge related to Eaze. Akhavan and
Weigand observe that anyone who Googles Eaze --
or anyone familiar with this case -- knows that
Eaze is a marijuana marketplace. Given the ease
with which a bank could figure out that Eaze
sells marijuana, and the alleged quantity of
marijuana sales consummated by Eaze (tens of
millions of dollars annually), defendants argue
that a juror could infer that banks must know
what Eaze and Circle are doing.
February
22, 2021
In Citibank Wire Transfer Case Money Does Not Have To Be Returned Judge Furman Rules
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Song Podcast
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- ESPN
SDNY
COURTHOUSE, Feb 16 – As Citibank tries to recoup
the money it wired out on August 11, 2020, the
virtual / Zoom trial began on December 9 before
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of
New York Judge Jesse M. Furman. Inner City Press
reported daily on the trial, below.
Now
on February 16, Judge Furman has ruled that the
Defendants can keep the money: "Defendants in
this case — ten investment advisory firms
managing entities that, collectively, received
more than $500 million of the mistaken August
11th wire transfers from Citibank — contend that
this exception to the general rule, known as the
“discharge-for-value defense,” applies here and
that Citibank is therefore not entitled to the
return of its money. In December 2020, the Court
held a bench trial to decide whether Defendants
are correct. For the reasons that follow, the
Court concludes that Defendants are indeed
correct. As the Court will explain, application
of the discharge-for-value defense ultimately
turns on whether Defendants (or, more precisely,
their clients) were on constructive notice of
Citibank’s mistake at the moment they received
the August 11th wire transfers. Based on the
credible testimony of Defendants’ employees and
the documentary record, the Court concludes that
they were not. Taken together, the evidence
shows that the entities believed — in good faith
and with ample justification — that the payments
they received were prepayments in full of the
Revlon loan. The real explanation for the
payments — a banking error of perhaps
unprecedented nature and magnitude —
understandably did not occur to them until,
nearly a day later, Citibank itself realized the
error and sent notices demanding the money back.
Because the discharge-for-value defense applies,
the Court holds that Citibank is not entitled to
its money back. Instead, Defendants’ clients are
entitled to keep the money. Accordingly, and for
the reasons that follow, judgment will be
entered in favor of Defendants." Full order on
Inner City Press' DocumentCloud, here.
Podcast here
Here
for now some of the Day 1 blow by blow.
And
Day 2 documents / Defendants exhibits zipped on
Patreon here,
one on DocumentCloud here,
saying "Please retain the funds received 8/11
into Battalion CLO VIII Ltd. on account of the
Revlon Term Loan 2016 pending further
instruction. Please do not book, and carry the
funds as a cash break for the time being."
Hear,
for now, this song.
On Day
6 and last, there were closing arguments
and questions, and this: Judge Furman begin with
questions about the Banque Worms decision.
There's some talk about getting a phone charger.
Counsel classily presses on. It's not easy being
a court reporter. Judge Furman: Page 47 of
Plaintiff's brief argues the District Court
erred...
Closing
arguments still going. Lot of talk of imputed
knowledge; Judge Furman asks if there's any
excited utterance showing the defendants knew
something was wrong, even before Citibank
notified them. Judge Furman also asks why
Citibank didn't get a grace period
February
15, 2021
Hamid Akhavan For Pot & Wirecard Trial To Be Freed With Armed Guards As Patterson Added
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- The
Source
SDNY
COURTHOUSE, Feb 11 – Hamid Akhavan and Ruben
Weigand are charged with a "scheme to deceive US
banks into processing in excess of $100 million
for marijuana products."
On
January 7, Akhavan and Weigand had a proceeding
before U.S. District Court for the Southern
District of New York Judge Jed S. Rakoff,
covered by Inner City Press, below.
It
emerged that Akhavan had been presented in
Magistrates Court earlier in the day on an
alleged violation of supervised release, and
detained on consent. It involved a gun.