Skip to content

Exception Tracking Spreadsheet (TicklerTrax™)
Downloaded by more than 1,000 bankers. Free Excel spreadsheet to help you track missing and expiring documents for credit and loans, deposits, trusts, and more. Visualize your exception data in interactive charts and graphs. Provided by bank technology vendor, AccuSystems. Download TicklerTrax for free.

Click Now!


Top Story Lending Related

11/09/2023

Reserve Banks released 10 CRA ratings in October

Our monthly review of the Federal Reserve's archive of CRA evaluations identified 10 evaluations of state-chartered member banks that were made public in October. Nine of the evaluations were rated Satisfactory. We congratulate Valley Bank of Ronan, Ronan, Montana, on its evaluation, which was rated Outstanding.

11/09/2023

CFPB orders Citibank to pay $25.9M for illegal discrimination

On Wednesday, the CFPB announced it has ordered Citibank, N.A. (Citi) to pay $25.9 million in fines and consumer redress for intentionally and illegally discriminating against credit card applicants the bank identified as Armenian American.

According to the CFPB's consent order, from 2015 through 2021, Citi singled out for discrimination applicants for certain credit card products, based on their surnames, whom it suspected of being of Armenian descent, in violation of the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, Regulation B, and the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA). Citi supervisors conspired to hide the discrimination by instructing employees not to discuss the discriminatory practices in writing or on recorded phone lines. Citi employees also lied about the basis of denial, providing false reasons to denied applicants, also in violation of ECOA, Regulation B and the CFPA. Under Wednesday’s order, Citi will pay $1.4 million to harmed consumers along with a $24.5 million penalty.

The CFPB reported that Citi treated Armenian Americans as criminals who were likely to commit fraud. From at least 2015 through 2021, Citi targeted retail services credit card applicants with surnames that Citi employees associated with Armenian national origin as well as applicants in or around Glendale, California. The bank specifically targeted surnames ending in “-ian” and “-yan.” Nicknamed “Little Armenia,” Glendale is home to approximately 15% of the Armenian American population in the U.S.

The Bureau said that Citi managers trained and directed employees to take part in the bank’s plan to single out Armenian Americans applying for retail services credit cards because of stereotypes Citi projected onto an entire nationality.

11/08/2023

FHFA reports on FHLBank System at 100 (in 9 years)

The Federal Housing Finance Agency yesterday released its report on the FHLBank System at 100: Focusing on the Future initiative, the Agency’s comprehensive review of the Federal Home Loan Bank (FHLBank) System in anticipation of the System’s centennial in 2032.

The FHLBank System at 100: Focusing on the Future initiative featured robust public engagement over the course of the past year, including listening sessions and regional roundtables as well as multiple opportunities for written input from stakeholders. FHFA drew on the feedback received through this public engagement along with its own extensive analysis when preparing the report, which includes recommendations for how the FHLBank System could effectively fulfill its mission. FHFA expects the initiative to continue as a multi-year, collaborative effort with stakeholders to address the recommended actions in the report.

11/08/2023

Bureau opens beta of 2024 HMDA Platform

The CFPB has released the beta version of the HMDA Platform for data that will be collected in 2024 (2024 Beta Platform). The 2024 Beta Platform provides financial institutions and vendors an opportunity to determine whether their sample loan/application register data comply with the reporting requirements outlined in the Filing Instructions Guide for HMDA data collected in 2024.

Visit the beta version of the HMDA Platform to login and select ‘2024’ from the dropdown to start testing. Financial institutions can use their log-in credentials from the previous filing periods or, if they have not previously filed data, establish log-in credentials and upload sample 2024 HMDA files to perform validation on their data. Use of this platform requires financial institutions to have a Legal Entity Identifier (LEI) which uniquely identifies the institution, and that LEI must be recognized by the HMDA Platform. If your institution has not registered for an LEI and intends to file HMDA data, visit the Global LEI Foundation for information on obtaining an LEI.

The 2024 Beta Platform is for testing purposes only and the Bureau will continue to add functionality. No data submitted on the Beta Platform will be considered for compliance with HMDA data reporting requirements. During the beta period, financial institutions may test and retest HMDA data files as often as desired.

11/07/2023

Fed releases results of October SLOOS

The Federal Reserve Board has released the results of its October 2023 Senior Loan Officer Opinion Survey on Bank Lending Practices (SLOOS), which addressed changes in the standards and terms on, and demand for, bank loans to businesses and households over the past three months, which generally correspond to the third quarter of 2023.

  • Regarding loans to businesses, survey respondents, on balance, reported tighter standards and weaker demand for commercial and industrial (C&I) loans to firms of all sizes over the third quarter.2 Furthermore, banks reported tighter standards and weaker demand for all commercial real estate (CRE) loan categories.
  • For loans to households, banks reported that lending standards tightened across all categories of residential real estate (RRE) loans other than government residential mortgages, for which standards remained basically unchanged. Meanwhile, demand weakened for all RRE loan categories. In addition, banks reported tighter standards and weaker demand for home equity lines of credit (HELOCs). Moreover, for credit card, auto, and other consumer loans, standards reportedly tightened, and demand weakened on balance.
  • The October SLOOS included a set of special questions that asked banks to assess the likelihood of approving credit card and auto loan applications by borrower FICO score (or equivalent) in comparison with the beginning of the year. Banks reported that they were less likely to approve such loans for borrowers with FICO scores of 620 and 680 in comparison with the beginning of the year, while they were more likely to approve credit card loan applications and about as likely to approve auto loan applications for borrowers with FICO scores of 720 over this same period.
  • The October SLOOS also included a set of special questions that inquired about banks’ reasons for changing standards for all loan categories in the third quarter of 2023. Banks most frequently cited a less favorable or more uncertain economic outlook; reduced tolerance for risk; deterioration in the credit quality of loans and collateral values; and concerns about funding costs as important reasons for tightening lending standards over the third quarter.

11/06/2023

FDIC releases 72 CRA evaluation ratings

On Friday, the FDIC issued a list of 72 state nonmember banks recently evaluated for compliance with the Community Reinvestment Act. The list covers evaluation ratings assigned to institutions in August 2023.

Of the 72 banks listed, 68 received evaluation ratings of Satisfactory. Two banks, one in West Mansfield, Ohio, and the other in Farragut, Tennessee, received ratings of Needs to Improve. We congratulate two banks that received Outstanding ratings:

11/06/2023

Iowa bank closed, acquired

The FDIC announced on Friday, that Citizens Bank, Sac City, Iowa, was closed by the Iowa Division of Banking, which appointed the FDIC as receiver. To protect depositors, the FDIC entered into a Purchase and Assumption Agreement with Iowa Trust & Savings Bank, Emmetsburg, Iowa, to assume all of the deposits of Citizens Bank.

The Division of Banking's press release reported that, during a joint and ongoing examination of the bank, examiners identified significant loan losses that had not previously been identified by the bank, and that the bank was declared insolvent. The bank had a concentration of out-of-territory and out-of-state loans to one industry and incurred heavy losses on some of those loans.

The two branches of Citizens Bank will reopen as branches of Iowa Trust & Savings Bank this morning during normal business hours. Checks drawn on Citizens Bank will continue to be processed. Loan customers should continue to make their payments as usual.

The FDIC estimates that the cost to the Deposit Insurance Fund (DIF) will be $14.8 million. Compared to other alternatives, Iowa Trust & Savings Bank’s acquisition was the least costly resolution for the DIF. Citizens Bank is the fifth bank to fail in the nation this year. The last failure in Iowa was Polk County Bank, Johnston, Iowa, on November 18, 2011.

11/03/2023

FTC settles with personal finance app provider Brigit

The Federal Trade Commission yesterday announced has taken action against personal finance app provider Brigit, alleging that its promises of “instant” cash advances of up to $250 for people living paycheck-to-paycheck were deceptive and that the company locked consumers into a $9.99 monthly membership they couldn’t cancel.

Brigit, also known as Bridge It, Inc., has agreed to settle the FTC’s charges, resulting in a proposed court order that would require the company to pay $18 million in consumer refund.

According to the FTC’s complaint, Brigit advertised its cash advance service online, through social media and through broadcast ads with claims that customers who subscribed to the company’s service would have access to “instant” cash advances of up to $250 “whenever you need it,” and could cancel anytime. Consumers could only access the cash advance features when they signed up for the $9.99 per month “Plus” subscription. The complaint also charges that consumers were rarely able to get an advance for the promised $250, and in many cases consumers were not able to receive a cash advance at all. Despite Brigit’s promises that advances would be available with “free instant transfers,” the complaint notes that the company began charging consumers a 99 cent fee for an instant transfer. Consumers who did not pay the fee had to wait up to three business days for their advances.

The proposed settlement order, which must be approved by a federal judge before it can go into effect, would require Brigit to pay $18 million to the FTC to be used to provide refunds to consumers. In addition, the order would prohibit Brigit from misleading consumers about how much money is available through their advances, how fast the money would be available, any fees associated with delivery, and consumers’ ability to cancel their service. The order would also require the company to make clear disclosures about its subscription products and provide a simple mechanism for consumers to cancel.

11/03/2023

FHA extends foreclosure protections in Maui County, Hawaii

The Federal Housing Administration yesterday announced it is extending its existing disaster-related foreclosure moratorium in Maui County, HI, through May 6, 2024, for borrowers with FHA-insured single-family mortgages, including seniors with Home Equity Conversion Mortgages. This extension provides additional time for borrowers in the process of recovering from the unprecedented challenges of the catastrophic Maui wildfires to consult with mortgage servicers and housing counselors and to access federal, state, and local housing resources without also having to contend with the burden of an impending foreclosure action.

FHA implemented an automatic 90-day foreclosure moratorium that required mortgage servicers to halt the initiation or completion of all foreclosure actions in Maui County on August 10, 2023, when the disaster occurred. The moratorium was originally set to expire on November 8, 2023. In addition to extending the foreclosure moratorium through May 6, 2024, FHA is also extending the deadline dates for servicers to perform certain legal actions related to foreclosure for an additional 180 days following the end of the foreclosure moratorium.

11/03/2023

CFPB report on state Community Reinvestment laws

The CFPB has released a new analysis of state Community Reinvestment Act laws, highlighting how states ensure financial institutions' lending, services, and investment activities meet the credit needs of their communities. The report examined the laws of seven states (Connecticut, Illinois, Massachusetts, New York, Rhode Island, Washington, West Virginia) and the District of Columbia, and found that many of those states adopted laws similar to the federal Community Reinvestment Act in decades following the 1977 passage of the landmark federal anti-redlining law.

While the federal Community Reinvestment Act law applies strictly to banks, state reinvestment laws can apply to a wide range of financial institutions, including nonbank mortgage companies. Banks now originate and hold a much smaller share of outstanding mortgage debt than they did when the legislation was originally enacted. In 1977, banks held 74% of outstanding mortgage debt. By 2007, this share had declined to just 28%. As of 2021, nonbank mortgage companies originated 64% of conventional home purchase mortgage loans, compared to the 25% originated by banks.

Pages

Training View All

Penalties View All

Search Top Stories