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May
25, 2020
Now the Fed
takes 12 days
to acknowledge
an emailed
FOIA request,
while
preparing to
rubber stamp
the underlying
bank merger
application -
UNacceptable.
From May 22:
"May 22,
2020
FOIA Request
No.
F-2020-00214
Dear Mr.
Lee:
This will
acknowledge
receipt of
your
correspondence
dated May 10,
2020 and
received by
the Board’s
Information
Disclosure
Section on May
11, 2020, in
which you
request,
pursuant to
the Freedom of
Information
Act (“FOIA”),
5 U.S.C. §
552, “all
withheld
portions of
the additional
information
submitted by
Banco Bradesco
on or about
May 6,
2020.”
The Board
makes every
effort to
fulfill
requests in a
timely manner;
however, there
may be delays
in fulfilling
complex
requests or
those that
require
consultation."
Really?
May 18, 2020
As US Bank Regulators Suspend Non Critical Exams Or Go 95% Off-Site New Project on Abuses
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- CJR -
PFT
UN
GATE / SDNY COURT, May 11 –
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, fair lending and
Community Reinvestment Act are taking a back
seat, or worse.
While
U.S. Comptroller of the Currency Joseph Otting
is pushing forward with his proposal to weaken
the CRA, his new chief national bank examiner
Blake Paulson said bank examinations have gone
95% off-site.
The Federal Reserve says it is suspending
"non-critical" examinations, even at the largest
institutions.
Meanwhile
the Fed is pushing forward to approve bank
merger applications, like Banco Bradesco - BAC
which Fair Finance Watch has been opposing, as
it has commented to the OCC against the
acquisition of State Farm's health savings
account business by Webster Bank, based in part
of Webster's problematic Paycheck Protection
Program performance.
Fintechs and other non-bank financial firms are
now at the PPP trough and are getting sued. For
example, there is the lawsuit filed as a class
action against Fountainhead Commercial Capital
LLC on May 6, noting the finance firm advertised
that it would process loan requests on a
first-come, first-served basis and then
stealthly shuffled its line of PPP applicants so
that it would lock down the largest lending fees
first.
Meanwhile Paulson of the OCC, which wants to
admit fintechs into banking without regulation,
says no one is in PPP for the money. This while
in response to Inner City Press' FOIA request
for Otting's schedule the OCC redacted the names
of banks that he met without, and obscured
others. (A FOIA appeal has been filed.)
May
11, 2020
Federal
Reserve Amid
Covid Lets
Banco Bradesco
Redact Exhibit
Names As Fair
Finance Watch
Says No
By
Matthew R. Lee, Exclusive
SOUTH
BRONX, SDNY, May 10 – Amid escalating attacks
on the U.S. Community Reinvestment Act, Inner
City Press / Fair Finance Watch back in August
filed comments under the CRA opposing Banco
Bradesco's application to acquire BAC Florida,
see below.
Now
amid the Coronavirus pandemic, it continues to
appear that the Federal Reserve is churning
forward to try to rubber stamp a bank merger. On
April 7 the Fed asked Banco Bradesco's New York
law firm to supplement the record with how it is
dealing with current economic situation. On
April 24 the bank's law firm Shearman &
Sterling sent an answer to the Fed - with the
entire Covid section, as sent as required to
Fair Finance Watch and Inner City Press,
entirely redacted. Inner City Press FOIA-ed
that, then was asked to narrow the request.
So
S&S submitted another filing, with even the
name of the exhibits redacted.
May
4, 2020
EDNY Probe of FIFA Makes Bank Hapoalim Pay $30M For Money Laundering, More to Fed
By
Matthew Russell Lee,
Patreon, Thread
Video
Honduras
- The
Source - The
Root - etc
SDNY
COURTHOUSE, April 30 -- From the U.S. District
Court for the Eastern District of New York,
this: "Bank Hapoalim B.M. (“BHBM”), an Israeli
bank with international operations, and its
wholly owned subsidiary, Hapoalim (Switzerland)
Ltd. (“BHS”), have agreed to forfeit $20,733,322
and pay a fine of $9,329,995 to resolve an
investigation into their involvement in a money
laundering conspiracy that fueled an
international soccer bribery scheme."
From
DC: "Federal Reserve Board announces it has
fined Bank Hapoalim B.M. $37.35 million for the
firm’s unsafe and unsound practices resulting in
violations of U.S. tax laws."
More
EDNY: "Specifically, BHBM and BHS have admitted
that they, through certain of their employees,
conspired to launder over $20 million in bribes
and kickbacks to soccer officials with
Fédération Internationale de Football
Association (“FIFA”) and other soccer
federations."
EDNY
prosecutors' FIFA cases include 26 publicly
announced individual guilty pleas (including
Blazer, Rocha, Hawilla, Callejas all 4 are
deceased). Several defendants who pleaded
guilty were sentenced, including Takkas, Hector
Trujillo, Li, Jimenez, Salguero, Pletsch.
They have completed their sentences (except for
supervised release and financial
components). Others who pleaded guilty are
awaiting sentencing - 2 individual defendants
(Napout and Marin) convicted at trial. They have
been sentenced. Napout is in prison.
Marin was granted compassionate release last
week and is in Brazil - 4 corporate guilty pleas
(two Traffic entities, Mimo, US Imagina LLC) - 1
corporate Deferred Prosecution Agreement - 2
corporate Non Prosecution Agreement."
Regarding those cases with particular regard to
Honduras (which saw another indictment on April
30 across the East River in the SDNY, here), The death of FIFA
scandal plagued former
Honduras president Rafael
Callejas was confirmed by
current drug scandal plagued
president Juan Orlando
Hernandez on April 5; AP
reported that "Callejas, 76,
pleaded guilty in 2016 and was
reportedly being held at a
prison in Atlanta when he
died."
Richard
P. Donoghue, United States Attorney for the
Eastern District of New York, Brian A.
Benczkowski, Assistant Attorney General of the
Justice Department’s Criminal Division, William
F. Sweeney, Assistant Director-in-Charge,
Federal Bureau of Investigation, New York Field
Office (FBI), and Ryan L. Korner, Special
Agent-in-Charge, Internal Revenue Service
Criminal Investigation, Los Angeles Field Office
(IRS-CI), made the announcement. “Today’s
resolution marks another successful chapter in
this District’s effort to hold accountable those
corporations and individuals who participated in
a bribery scheme that corrupted international
soccer,” stated United States Attorney Donoghue.
“This Office, along with our law enforcement
partners, will continue to identify wrongdoers
who manipulate international soccer in order to
reap illicit profits and bring them to justice.”
“For nearly five years, Bank Hapoalim employees
used the U.S. financial system to launder tens
of millions of dollars in bribe payments to
corrupt soccer officials in multiple countries,”
stated AAG Benczkowski. “Today’s announcement
demonstrates the Department’s commitment to
holding financial institutions to account when
they knowingly facilitate corruption and other
criminal conduct.” 2 “This
announcement illustrates another aspect in the
spider web of bribery, corruption and backroom
deals going on behind the scenes as soccer games
were played on the field. Bank Hapoalim admits
executives looked the other way, and allowed
illicit activity to continue even when employees
discovered the scheme and reported it. The New
York FBI Eurasian Organized Crime Task Force and
our law enforcement partners have doggedly
pursued every strand uncovered in this criminal
investigation, and will keep at it until
they root out all of the bad actors,” stated FBI
Assistant Director-in- Charge Sweeney.
“This forfeiture sends a clear message that no
matter how complex or far reaching the
conspiracy, justice will prevail. Bank Hapoalim
B.M. and its subsidiary, Hapoalim Ltd.,
participated in a conspiracy that corrupted
international soccer, its confederations, and
member associations,” stated IRS-CI Special
Agent-in-Charge Korner. “IRS-CI is proud to work
alongside our international law enforcement
partners, the FBI, and the United States
Attorney’s Office to bring closure to this
egregious international scandal that corrupted
the sport of soccer.” According to
admissions in the statement of facts stipulated
to by BHBM and BHS as part of the agreement,
from approximately December 10, 2010 to February
20, 2015, BHBM and BHS personnel conspired with
sports marketing executives, including
executives associated with Full Play Group S.A.
(“Full Play”), a sports media and marketing
business based in Argentina, and others, to
launder at least $20,733,322 in bribes and
kickbacks to soccer officials. In exchange for
those bribes and kickbacks, the soccer officials
awarded or steered broadcasting rights for
soccer matches and tournaments to the sports
marketing executives and their companies. Full
Play allegedly executed the illegal payments
from accounts held at BHS and BHBM’s branch in
Miami, Florida, which were held in the names of
Full Play subsidiaries and affiliates. BHBM and
BHS admitted they, through BHS and BHBM’s Miami
branch, conspired to launder money for Luis
Bedoya, who at various times served as the
president of the Federación Colombiana de
Futbol, a vice president of the Confederación
Sudamericana de Fútbol (CONMEBOL), and a member
of FIFA’s executive committee. BHBM and BHS
allowed accounts controlled by Bedoya to be used
to receive illicit bribe and kickback payments.
In November 2015, Bedoya pleaded guilty to
racketeering conspiracy and wire fraud
conspiracy in the Eastern District of New York.
He is awaiting sentencing. Despite BHS
compliance personnel repeatedly raising concerns
about certain payments made to soccer officials
from the accounts associated with Full Play,
BHBM and BHS failed to take action. Instead, the
banks’ relationship managers continued executing
illicit bribe and kickback payments on behalf of
Full Play. As outlined in the agreement, the
government’s decision to enter into a
three-year, non-prosecution agreement with BHBM
and BHS was premised upon the banks’ thorough
and complete cooperation, BHBM’s pledge to
review and improve its 3 anti-money
laundering program, and the banks’ other
substantial remedial efforts, which include
closing Bank Hapoalim (Latin America) S.A. and
BHBM’s branch in Miami. BHS is also in the
process of closing its operations." Inner City
Press will follow these cases as much as
possible.
As to previously SDNY target on FIFA Rafael
Callejo there was only one problem with that.
Even a cursory search of the U.S. Bureau of
Prisons website for Rafael Callejas finds one,
76, Register Number: 81120-053, released from
U.S. custody on
12/17/2015.
April
27, 2020
Federal
Reserve Amid
Covid 19
Letting Banco
Bradesco
Redact All on
Virus Fair
Finance Watch
Says No
By
Matthew R. Lee, Exclusive
SOUTH
BRONX, SDNY, April 25 – Amid escalating attacks
on the U.S. Community Reinvestment Act, Inner
City Press / Fair Finance Watch back in August
filed comments under the CRA opposing Banco
Bradesco's application to acquire BAC Florida,
see below.
Now
amid the Coronavirus pandemic, it still appears
that the Federal Reserve is churning forward to
try to rubber stamp a bank merger. On April 7
the Fed asked Banco Bradesco's New York law firm
to supplement the record with how it is dealing
with current economic situation. On April 24 the
bank's law firm Shearman & Sterling sent an
answer to the Fed - with the entire Covid
section, as sent as required to Fair Finance
Watch and Inner City Press, entirely redacted.
Inner City Press has written to the Fed: "This
is a FOIA request for the all withheld portions
of the applications and applications additional
information submitted by Banco Bradesco to
aquire BAC including but not limited to the
redacted portions of the April 24 submission,
required to be sent to Fair Finance Watch and
Inner City Press under the ex parte rules, which
redacted the ENTIRE RESPONSE as to the impact of
the Coronavirus economic downturn on the banks
and merger. This is unacceptable."
April
20, 2020
Let the
conflicts of
interest
begin, while
many small
businesses are
excluded by
the big banks
getting the
PPP cash (and
leaving their
ATMs empty) -
"The Federal
Reserve Board
on Friday
announced a
rule change to
bolster the
effectiveness
of the Small
Business
Administration's
(SBA) Paycheck
Protection
Program (PPP).
The change
will
temporarily
modify the
Board's rules
so that
certain bank
directors and
shareholders
can apply for
PPP loans for
their small
businesses.
To prevent
favoritism,
Board rules
limit the
types and
quantity of
loans that
bank
directors,
shareholders,
officers, and
businesses
owned by these
persons can
receive from
their related
banks. These
requirements
have prevented
some small
business
owners from
accessing PPP
loans—especially
in rural
areas.
The SBA
recently
clarified that
PPP lenders
can make PPP
loans to
businesses
owned by their
directors and
certain
shareholders,
subject to
certain limits
and without
favoritism.
The Board's
change will
allow those
individuals to
apply for PPP
loans... The
rule change is
effective
immediately
and will be in
place while
the PPP is
active.
Comments will
be accepted
for 45 days
after
publication in
the Federal
Register."
April 13, 2020
Federal
Reserve Amid
Covid 19
Rubber Stamp
Prepared For
Banco Bradesco
Fair Finance
Watch Says No
By
Matthew R. Lee, Exclusive
SOUTH
BRONX, SDNY, April 7 – Amid escalating attacks
on the U.S. Community Reinvestment Act, Inner
City Press / Fair Finance Watch back in August
filed comments under the CRA opposing Banco
Bradesco's application to acquire BAC Florida,
see below.
April
6 2020
As Regulators Give Even Volcker Rulers More Time Community Reinvestment Act Comment Period Must Be Extended
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
Periscope
BBC
- Decrypt
- LightRead - Honduras
-
Source
BRONX
/ SDNY, April 2 -- With the Community
Reinvestment Act under attack by US Comptroller
of the Currency Josephy Otting, Fair Finance
Watch and Inner City Press on March 11 submitted
a third comment this time making an obvious
request.
They
ask that in light of Coronavirus / COVID-19 the
comment period on the assault on CRA be extended
for months. See also here.
Though it shouldn't have been
necessary, Fair Finance Watch
commented again on March 20,
noting postponements by SEC
and others.
With Otting
even still resisting
postponing his dream of
weakening the CRA, his OCC has
joined not only his sometime
partner in crime the FDIC but
also the Fed providing a TWO
YEAR extension for
big banks, while still
threatening to push through his attack
on CRA, ghoulishly using
Coronavirus,
see below.
On April 2,
an even more
telling move
involving
the OCC (and
the FDIC,
Fed and
others) - to
refuse to
extend a
comment
period, in
this case
ending April
1, but to say
that for those
commenting on
the Volcker
Rule,
comments will
be considered
for at least a
month after
the
"expiration"
of the comment
period.
March
30, 2020
Troubling:
Why does the
Fed need
BlackRock?
Parts of the
Fed’s
bond-buying
program fit
more squarely
in an asset
manager’s
wheelhouse.
While the
Fed’s main job
is to set
big-picture
monetary
policy by
purchasing
Treasury debt,
a fund firm
like BlackRock
can be tapped
for its
expertise in
evaluating and
managing
different
kinds of debt,
like
portfolios of
corporate
bonds --
something
that’s not a
main skill set
of the central
bank.
BlackRock
Financial
Markets
Advisory, an
arm that
consults with
government
agencies and
institutions,
will manage
the projects.
Aladdin, the
risk-monitoring
software that
BlackRock will
use in the
process,
already
watches over
more than $20
trillion, with
a client base
including
insurers,
pensions and
fellow asset
managers
March
23, 2020
Given the
Coronavirus
crisis, how
can the
Federal
Reserve be
closing the
public comment
period on
mergers on
which public
hearings can
be requested?
We'll have
more on this,
from Inner
City Press and
Fair Finance
Watch which is
also raising
the issue to
the other bank
regulatory
agencies.
March
16, 2020
On March 14 President Trump said of Jerome Powell, I could remove him, or demoted him to regular Governor status and appoint another Chair.
How
long can this
go on?
March
9, 2020
It begins:
"After careful
consideration
of the growing
public health
concerns
associated
with the
coronavirus
(COVID-19),
the organizing
sponsors of
the 2020
National
Interagency
Community
Reinvestment
Conference
(NICRC),
scheduled
March 9-12 in
Denver,
Colorado, have
made the
decision to
postpone the
conference.
The Federal
Reserve, the
Office of the
Comptroller of
the Currency,
and the
Federal
Deposit
Insurance
Corporation
jointly made
this decision
out of an
abundance of
caution to
help safeguard
the health and
well-being of
the more than
1,300
registered
conference
participants.
The NICRC
planning team
is working to
confirm a date
to reschedule
the conference
as soon as
possible later
this year. "
March
2, 2020
Look
who's
promoting Joe
Otting and his
assault on
CRA, March 10
in Denver:
"Esther L.
George
President and
CEO Federal
Reserve Bank
of Kansas
City
introduced
by
Jackson
Winsett
Assistant Vice
President and
Community
Affairs
Officer
Federal
Reserve Bank
of Kansas
City
Remarks on
Modernizing
the CRA
Joseph M.
Otting
Comptroller
of the
Currency
introduced
by Barry
Wides Deputy
Comptroller
for Community
Affairs Office
of the
Comptroller of
the Currency."
February
24, 2020
Morgan Stanley, Made a Bank Holding Company Without Comment by FRB, Now Makes $13B Offers For E-Trade, Highlighting Community Reinvestment Act Fight
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- CJR -
PFT
February
17, 2020
Community Reinvestment Act Attack by Otting Triggers Fed Powell Half True Answer in House
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- CJR -
PFT
SOUTH
BRONX, Feb 11– The
current US Comptroller of the Currency Joseph
Otting cashed out of his position with OneWest
Bank in California by overseeing fake comments
in favor its acquisition by the CIT Group.
Then, emboldened, he devoted the Office of the
Comptroller of the Currency to weakening or
destroying the Community Reinvestment Act which
provides for the public process that he
subverted with fake comments.
On February 11, Federal Reserve chairman Jerome
Powell answered but was not held to task on the
CRA. Rep. Nydia Velazquez, D-N.Y., asked Powell
if he "would agree... that it's more important
to get the rule right than to do it quickly."
"Yes,
I mean I think that's been our approach and will
continue to be," Powell said in response.
But
the Fed's approach has also been to allow
applicants like Banco Bradesco to withhold for a
month their answers in CRA protested
proceedings. We'll have more on this.
Inner City Press, which along with CRC opposed
the merger and then pursued a Freedom of
Information Act request for all documents about
Otting's fraud, soon found its and Fair Finance
Watch's comments to the OCC being rejected, or
ignored, or returned.
While Inner City Press' FOIA requests get fee
waivers from the Federal Reserve and a range of
agencies in the US and beyond, Otting's OCC
suddenly started denying them, hindering access
to the merger applications on which CRA is
enforced.
Otting
is trying to push through this CRA-killing
proposal on a short comment period, cognizant of
the other CRA, the Congressioal Review Act. But
it is obvious that even banks want more time.
February
10, 2020
Received
from an
increasingly
untransparent
US Federal
Reserve: all
portions that
Banco Bradesco
chose ot
withheld, and
late-send,
will be
withheld.
Well, we will
be appealing.
Watch this
site.
February
3, 2020
While some are
praising the
Federal
Reserve on
CRA, note that
when Banco
Bradesco
without
explanation
withheld its
submission
from Fair
Finance Watch
during a CRA
protest, the
Fed ignored
it, leading
Bradesco's
lawyer Reena
Agrawal Sahni
to arrogantly
write to the
Fed, smail
mail to Inner
City Press,
that "we do
not believe
that there was
been any
gaming of a
system." Well,
we do - no
explanation of
withholding
the document
for a month is
even offered.
In a court,
there would be
sanctions for
contempt. At
the Fed, with
banks? It's
all among
friends. We'll
have more on
this.
January
27, 2020
Here
a report Inner
City Press is
looking into:
Iraqi Union
Bank is owned
by the
brothers Aqil
and Ali
Muftin, who
according to
the report
have close
ties with
pro-Iran
former Iraqi
PM Nuri
al-Maliki.
In 2016, the
American
Federal
Reserve placed
$200 million
of the bank's
funds on hold
due to
suspicion of
corruption.
But
the Fed's slow
and worse
response to
FOIA on
Bangladesh
Bank does not
bode well..
January
20, 2020
To Fed
Bradesco Late
Sent CRA
Redacted Info
to Inner City
Press But
FRBNY Ignores
It
By
Matthew R. Lee, Exclusive
SOUTH
BRONX, SDNY, Jan 15 – Amid escalating attacks
on the U.S. Community Reinvestment Act, Inner
City Press / Fair Finance Watch back in August
filed comments under the CRA opposing Banco
Bradesco's application to acquire BAC Florida,
see below.
On
December 12 on a two and a half week delay the
Federal Reserve sent Inner City Press a terse
summary of an ex parte meeting it held with
Bradesco. The delay was not explained; if the
past is any guide, this may just be the Fed
ticking the boxes in order to rubber stamp
Bradesco's application despite its record.
Now the Fed has entirely ignored evidence that
Banco Bradesco and its outside law firm gamed
the system and violated the Fed's own Rules
Against Ex Parte Communications by withholding
for a month from Inner City Press a letter they
emailed to Fed - and snail mailed a month late
to Inner City Press.
And the Fed's delay spawned even more outrageous
behavior by Bradesco and its outside law firm
Shearman and Sterling. Inner City Press / Fair
Finance Watch on January 11 complainted to the
Federal Reserve Board: "Re: Outraged
Supplemental Comment on Application by Banco
Bradesco to acquire BAC Florida in Extraordinary
Circumstances: redacted CRA answer of Dec 11
sent to us Jan 9
Dear
Chair Powell, Secretary Misback and others in
the FRS:
This
is a supplemental comment opposing and
requesting redacted information late sent --
cynically mailed a month late - and in this
connection an extension of the FRB's public
comment period on the Application by Banco
Bradesco to acquire BAC
Florida. As we stated in
August, this is a proposal by a bank in Brazil
where authorities are reviewing the bank for
corruption, to buy a US bank with a disparate
lending record in order to use it to serve
disproportionately the affluent. There is no
public benefit; the application should be
denied.
Troublingly, today I received in regular mail an
envelope mailed on January 9 by Bradesco's
outside law firm. Inside the envelope was a
submission including about CRA, redacted - and
the letter to the Fed was dated December 11,
four weeks prior.
So
Bradesco is trying to redacted CRA information -
and cynically snail mailed its submission to
Inner City Press four weeks after they submitted
it to the Fed.
We
have today submitted a FOIA request for all of
the redacted information - in fact, it should be
provided forthwith under the Ex Parte
Rules. But the Fed must act on this, the four
week delay. The comment period must be reopened
and this application should - must - be denied.
Otherwise banks will game the system and the Fed
simply accept it. This letter should be
responded to forthwith."
January
13, 2020
To Fed
Bradesco Late
Sends
Community
Reinvestment
Act Redacted
Info to Fair
Finance Watch
By
Matthew R. Lee, Exclusive
SOUTH
BRONX, SDNY, Jan 11 – Amid escalating attacks
on the U.S. Community Reinvestment Act, Inner
City Press / Fair Finance Watch back in August
filed comments under the CRA opposing Banco
Bradesco's application to acquire BAC Florida,
see below.
On
December 12 on a two and a half week delay the
Federal Reserve sent Inner City Press a terse
summary of an ex parte meeting it held with
Bradesco. The delay was not explained; if the
past is any guide, this may just be the Fed
ticking the boxes in order to rubber stamp
Bradesco's application despite its record.
And the Fed's delay spawned even more outrageous
behavior by Bradesco and its outside law firm
Shearman and Sterling. Inner City Press / Fair
Finance Watch on January 11 complainted to the
Federal Reserve Board: "Re: Outraged
Supplemental Comment on Application by Banco
Bradesco to acquire BAC Florida in Extraordinary
Circumstances: redacted CRA answer of Dec 11
sent to us Jan 9
Dear
Chair Powell, Secretary Misback and others in
the FRS:
This
is a supplemental comment opposing and
requesting redacted information late sent --
cynically mailed a month late - and in this
connection an extension of the FRB's public
comment period on the Application by Banco
Bradesco to acquire BAC
Florida. As we stated in
August, this is a proposal by a bank in Brazil
where authorities are reviewing the bank for
corruption, to buy a US bank with a disparate
lending record in order to use it to serve
disproportionately the affluent. There is no
public benefit; the application should be
denied.
Troublingly, today I received in regular mail an
envelope mailed on January 9 by Bradesco's
outside law firm. Inside the envelope was a
submission including about CRA, redacted - and
the letter to the Fed was dated December 11,
four weeks prior.
So
Bradesco is trying to redacted CRA information -
and cynically snail mailed its submission to
Inner City Press four weeks after they submitted
it to the Fed.
January
6, 2020
Last week
Inner City
Press reported
on its
complaint to
the Federal
Reserve about
the Fed having
hid merger
proposals
until the
comment
periods
closed. Now
they've posted
a few - but no
written
response to
the complaint
or the formal
requests in
it. We'll have
more on this.
December
30, 2019
Community Reinvestment Act Assault By OCC Joined In By Federal Reserve Hiding Mergers CFPB Hiding Data
By
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- CJR -
PFT
SDNY
/ BRONX, Dec 28 – The assault against the U.S.
Community Reinvestment Act, begun by Comptroller
of the Currency Joseph Otting then joined in by
the FDIC and the Consumer Financial Protection
Bureau withholding mortgage data, has reached
the Federal Reserve.
For
months the Federal Reserve has first slowed down
its disclosure of pending merger applications on
which the public can comment under CRA, and now
outright hide them, such that on its website no
proposed mergers have open comment periods. Call
it the death, or attempted murder, of the
Community Reinvestment Act.
Alongside comments to the OCC and FDIC, Inner
City Press / Fair Finance Watch on December 28
filed comments with the Federal Reserve: Dear
Chair Powell, Secretary Misback, others in
FRB: On behalf of Inner City Press /
Fair Finance Watch and in my personal capacity,
this is questionlessly tiemly protest to one
sample application, a complaint about the FRB's
failure update its H2A, and on the withholding
of 2018 HMDA data in online form by CFPB and
other FFIEC regulators including the FRB - and a
demand for actions.
Currently as of December 28, the most recent
application on the FRB's online H2A has a
comment period ending December 20 - that is,
already closed. This negligence, or intentional
exclusion of the public, has been the case at
the FRB for months. All comment periods must be
re-opened.
Here
is a timely protest to one sample application
that (only) the Federal Register tells us has a
comment period expiring "not later than December
30, 2019.A. Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago
(Colette A. Fried, Assistant Vice President) 230
South LaSalle Street, Chicago, Illinois
60690-1414:1. Bosshard Financial Group, Inc., La
Crosse, Wisconsin; to merge with Northern
Bankshares, Inc., and thereby indirectly acquire
Mc Farland State Bank, both of McFarland,
Wisconsin.Board of Governors of the Federal
Reserve System, November 25,
2019."
Second
and more systematic problem, that must be solved
or all comment periods extended: the Consumer
Financial Protection Bureau for 2018 data has
unilaterally removed the ability of the public
to view HMDA data by race on its website, which
the FFIEC / Federal Reserve allowed in previous
years and the CFBP did even in 2017. Inner City
Press / Fair Finance Watch contends that the
CFPB's move is both anti-public and
illegal.
Given
this situation, which must be addressed, for now
Inner City Press timely submitted the two
attached photos from the CFPB's disturbingly and
intentionally stripped down site. In 2018 in
Wisconsin, McFarland made 206 loans to white,
and only three to African Americans. This is an
interim protest; the comment period(s) must be
extended.
Here
are some more applications not in the FRB's H2A,
requiring explanation and extension of comment
periods:
not
later than December 20, 2019. A. Federal
Reserve Bank of Atlanta (Kathryn Haney,
Assistant Vice President) 1000 Peachtree Street
NE, Atlanta, Georgia 30309. 1. BCI Financial
Group, Inc., Miami, Florida; to merge with
Executive Banking Corporation, and thereby
indirectly acquire Executive National Bank, both
of Miami, Florida. In connection with this
proposal, Bci Financial Group, Inc.'s parent
companies, Empresas Juan Yarur SpA and Banco de
Credito e Inversiones S.A., both of Santiago,
Chile, to indirectly acquire Executive Banking
Corporation and Executive National
Bank. not later than December 20,
2019. A. Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis
(David L. Hubbard, Senior Manager) P.O. Box 442,
St. Louis, Missouri 63166-2034. 1. Citizens
Union Bancorp of Shelbyville, Inc., Shelbyville,
Kentucky; to merge with Owenton Bancorp, Inc.,
and thereby indirectly acquire Peoples Bank
& Trust Company, both of Owenton,
Kentucky.
not
later than January 23, 2020. A. Federal
Reserve Bank of St. Louis (David L. Hubbard,
Senior Manager) P.O. Box 442, St. Louis,
Missouri 63166-20341. Comments can also be sent
electronically to
Comments.applications@stls.frb.org:
First Horizon National Corporation, Memphis,
Tennessee; to acquire IBERIABANK Corporation and
thereby indirectly acquire IBERIABANK, both of
Lafayette, Louisiana.
B.
Federal Reserve Bank of New York (Ivan Hurwitz,
Senior Vice President) 33 Liberty Street, New
York, New York 10045-0001. . Barclays US
Holdings Limited, New York, New York; a company
organized under the laws of the Cayman Islands,
to become a bank holding company by acquiring
Barclays US LLC, also of New York, New York, and
thereby indirectly acquire Barclays Bank
Delaware, Wilmington, Delaware. In addition,
Barclays PLC and Barclays Bank PLC, both of
London, England, to retain Barclays US Holdings
Limited and thereby indirectly acquire Barclays
US LLC and Barclays Bank Delaware.
not
later than January 9, 2020. A. Federal
Reserve Bank of New York (Ivan Hurwitz, Senior
Vice President) 33 Liberty Street, New York, New
York 10045 1. First Bancorp, San Juan,
Puerto Rico; to acquire Santander BanCorp and
thereby indirectly acquire Banco Santander
Puerto Rico, both of San Juan, Puerto Rico. In
addition, FirstBank Puerto Rico, San Juan,
Puerto Rico, to become a bank holding company
for a moment in time by acquiring Santander
BanCorp and thereby indirectly acquiring Banco
Santander Puerto Rico.
In this context, Inner City Press / Fair Finance
Watch is demanding an extension of all comment
periods by the FRB, its intervention with the
CFPB to restore access on the website itself to
2018 HMDA data, and on the current record the
denial by the FRB of these application(s). Thank
you for your prompt attention, Matthew R. Lee
Inner City Press / Fair Finance Watch
Watch this site.