| Lakeland Bank DOJ
Deal Left Disparities So
Protest Now Fed Rubber
Stamps Provident
by
Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book
Substack
SOUTH BRONX, NY,
April 11– When
the US
Department of
Justice sued
and
immediately
settled with
Lakeland Bank
for fair
lending
violations, it
announced a
proposed
merger with
Provident
Bank.
As if to sweep it
under the carpet.
And when Fair
Finance Watch looked into it,
it found that the DOJ
settlement did not address in
any way the banks' disparities
in New York. So on December 1,
the FDIC's comment deadline,
it filed a protest, with Inner
City Press on the FOIA.
Jump cut to March
15, 2023, when Provident's
Deputy General Counsel filed a
letter with the New York Fed,
cc-ing Rodgin Cohen - only on
New Jersey, nothing on the
disparities in New York.
On January 18
Provident asked two Board
questions - by withholding the
entire answers. Inner City
Press immediately FOIAed: "The
entire response is withheld,
about fair lending compliance,
including public commitments
that are unfulfilled. This
cannot stand; the information
must be provided before the
Board acts in any way on the
application (other than
denial.)"
Jump cut to
mid-February: while still not
providing the withheld past
answer, the Fed asked more
questions. Letter here.
On February 27
Provident provided spin,
including that "under the
consent order that it entered
into with the U.S. Department
of Justice. These
obligations require Lakeland
Bank to, among other things,
establish a $12 million
loan subsidy fund to increase
credit for consumers applying
for loans in
majority-Black and Hispanic
census tracts in a five-county
area in and around
Newark, New Jersey" - but
nothing where other
disparities. Letter here.
On April 11,
2024, the Fed hauled off and
approved, noting Inner City
Press / Fair Finance Watch
"objected to the proposal,
alleging that in 2021,
Provident Bank and Lakeland
Bank made no home loans to
African American individuals
in New York State.30 30
The data cited by the
commenter corresponds to
publicly available 2021 data
by Provident Bank and Lakeland
Bank under HMDA. Following
consummation of the proposed
transaction, the combined
organization will add to its
assessment area Bronx and
Kings counties, each of which
includes a significant number
of majority-minority and LMI
communities... The Board also
has considered the DOJ Consent
Order, including Lakeland
Bank’s efforts towards meeting
its obligations under the DOJ
Consent Order, and that the
DOJ Consent Order binds
Provident without further
action by the Board." We'll
see.
Watch this site.
***
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