| Capital One Should
Discover Merger Dead But Brags
of Access Before July 19 Public
Meeting
by
Matthew R. Lee
SOUTH
BRONX, June
12 – Capital One has applied
to buy Discover, in an
anticompetitive deal that
should be rejected by
regulators if they mean what
they have been saying. While
they applied late March 20, as
of 1 pm on March 22 there was
no notice of the Federal
Reserve's or OCC's websites.
Inner City Press submitted
second FOIA requests to each
agency. Public hearings should
be held, not only on antitrust
but also lending disparities
at both companies.
On April 24
the Fed extended its comment
period to May 31 - without
(yet?) granting public
hearings, nor providing the
FOIA documents.
Yet on
June 12, this: "June 11
(Reuters) - Capital One
Financial Corp: * CAPITAL ONE
EXEC SAYS IN CONVERSATION WITH
U.S. FEDERAL RESERVE AND
OFFICE OF COMPTROLLER OF
CURRENCY ON DISCOVER DEAL -
INVESTOR CONFERENCE." In
conversation? With no
documents provided to the
opposed public? Inner City
Press / Fair Finance Watch
registered for the public
meeting, in opposition.
On May 14 - still
without providing FOIA
documents - the Fed and OCC
set a July 19 virtual public
meeting. And already, pro
merger lobbying had begun, for
example here
by a group previously
identified in a Trenton NJ
political quid pro quo
scandal.
Then an SC
Astroturf
piece, then going green.
Next a former NH
Commissioner, and a "former
Democratic campaign strategist
in Southern Nevada."
Unreal. We'll have more
on this.
The OCC
first put its application in
its reading room. And it is an
outrage, Capital One gaming
the CRA system. For example
"the Proposed Transaction
would result in CONA
establishing a new assessment
area in Delaware, which
will include all census tracts
in Sussex County and seven
contiguous census tracts
in Kent County."
That for a
nationwide card and subprime
auto lender...
As
documented by Fair Finance
Watch, Discover Bank in 2022
denied mortgage loans
application from African
Americans more than twice as
frequently as those of
whites.
Previously, Inner City Press
and NCRC challenged Capital
One's acquisition of ING
Direct, see here.This
time, given the antitrust
enforcement claims being made
in DC, this proposal should be
dead in the water. Watch this
site.
***
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