| First Busey $1B Bid For CrossFirst
Hit by Fair Finance Watch Now Fed Asks of
Crime Charge
by
Matthew R. Lee,
Patreon Substack
FEDERAL
COURT, Nov 14
–
In the Midwest, Busey Bank is
trying to move into the Kansas
City area via merger, with a
disparate lending record. Fair
Finance Watch with Inner City
Press on the FOIA has filed a
timely first comment on, the
Applications
Van
Dukeman, First Busey's CEO
called it a "great fit from a
cultural perspective." But
consider Busey Bank's culture
- including contempt for CRA,
its disparate lending
record:
First Busey's
Busey Bank in Illinois in 2023
- data not yet included in any
CRA exam - made 1163 mortgage
loans to whites, and only 772
loans to African Americans.
Meanwhile it denied only 216
applications from whites, and
fully 24 from African
Americans. Busey Bank should
be referred to DOJ.
Busey Bank in
Missouri in 2023 - data not
yet included in any CRA exam -
made 49 mortgage loans to
whites, and onlyseven loans to
African Americans. Meanwhile
it denied only 21 applications
from whites, and fully eight
from African Americans
Busey Bank in
Indiana in 2023 - data not yet
included in any CRA exam -
made 22 mortgage loans to
whites, and only two loans to
African Americans.
Busey Bank in
Florida in 2023 - data not yet
included in any CRA exam -
made 80 mortgage loans to
whites, and only ONE loan to
an African
American.
There is
litigation, for example under
the FCRA, here
- dropped without explanation,
presumable settled, the FRB
should ask First Busey about
all outstanding consumer
litigation.
And there was the
First Busey board member,
Elisabeth Kimmel, caught in
the college admissions
scandal, here.
Rather than
provide the CRA info, First
Busey's Monica L. Bowe,
Executive Vice President &
Chief Risk Officer of First
Busey Corporation - and of the
Risk Management Association-
submitted a letter saying CRA
conditions are never attached
- false, and telling.
On November 14
the Federal Reserve asked
First Busey: "The Board has
received comments objecting to
the proposal. To the extent
not discussed in the Response
Letter that Applicant
submitted on October 15, 2024,
provide information that is
responsive to the following
concerns: a) The commenter
notes that a board member of
the Applicant was charged with
criminal conduct in a college
admissions scandal. Respond to
this concern as it relates to
the managerial resources of
Applicant post-merger. b) The
commenter notes that Applicant
may be involved in litigation
under the Fair Credit
Reporting Act, and requests
information on all of
Applicant’s outstanding
consumer litigation. Respond
to these concerns." Because in
their arrogance they hadn't.
Watch this site.
***
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