| Fulton Disparities Raised
Fed which Looks Away from $7B Deal
& Has Fulton on Board
by
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book
Substack
SDNY/SOUTH
BRONX, Jan 11 – As US
bank regulators loosen rules -
including the FDIC moving to
eliminate public comment
altogether on branch expansion
applications - now more big
banks are moving to get
bigger.
And one is
moving without even applying
to the Federal Reserve Board,
see below.
So on
December 8 Fair Finance Watch
filed with the Fed - in
advance - against Fulton
Financial's newest merger
proposal, see below.
In response to
questions the Philadelphia Fed
apparently never sent to FFW,
Fulton has sought confidential
treatment even for when it
will project which branches it
would close - this as Fulton
is represented on the Board of
the Federal Reserve Bank of
Philadelphia. We've FOIA-ed
the information Fulton
spuriously withheld - and
this: " This is also a
FOIA request for all records
reflecting FRS including FRB
of Philadelphia considering of
possible conflicts of
interesting in having Fulton's
CEO on the FRB of
Philadelphia's Board of
Directors while the FRB of
Philadelphia considers
Fulton's merger applications
including deciding how to
treat adverse comments and
whether to sent copies of AI
letters and allow withholding
of answers to AI letters. The
request, for context, includes
FRS consideration of bank and
bank holding company
representation on the boards
of the other Reserve Banks."
Submitted
December 8: this concerns the
proposal by Fulton Financial
to acquire and merge with Blue
Foundry Bancorp.
This is opposition at the
earliest possible time. In
light of a recent proposal in
which only the OCC is
considering a multi-billion
merger, we are submitting this
to the FRB as soon as
possible. Please immediate
inform FFW if Fulton is
applying to the FRS, and
consider this comment on any
and all Fulton
applications.
Fulton Bank NA in Delaware in
2024 made 199 mortgage loans
to whites, and only 24 to
African Americans. Meanwhile
it denied five applications
from African Americans, and
only 68 from
whites.
This is
disparate.
Fulton Bank NA in Pennsylvania
in 2024 made 2381 mortgage
loans to whites, and only 181
to African Americans.
Meanwhile it denied 111
applications from African
Americans, and only 616 from
whites.
Fulton Bank NA in Maryland in
2024 made 373mortgage loans to
whites, and only 132 to
African Americans. Meanwhile
it denied 90 applications from
African Americans, and only 83
from
whites.
Fulton Bank NA in New Jersey
in 2024 made 805 mortgage
loans to whites, and only 33
to African Americans.
Meanwhile it denied 44
applications from African
Americans, and only 359 from
whites.
Fulton Bank NA in Virginia in
2024 made 500 mortgage loans
to whites, and only 79 to
African Americans. Meanwhile
it denied 35 applications from
African Americans, and only 77
from whites.
Now
Fulton wants to buy a
"money-losing" bank in New
Jersey, and take its branch
closing ways there - Fulton
has closed many branches -
here in the past year and a
half, three dozen closings,
etc.
Then Fulton withheld
their branch closing response
to questions not sent to FFW
by the FRB of Philadelphia, on
wose board of directors Fulton
has a seat.
Inner City
Press, which has opposed the
FDIC's moves to close itself
to public scrutiny - American
Banker op-ed here
- will be submitting FOIA
requests on all this. The FDIC
said it will eliminate public
notices because it does not
receive enough public
comments. That is now
changing. Watch this site.
***
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