News
The CFPB released its Fair Lending Annual Report to Congress , describing their fair lending activities in enforcement and supervision; guidance and rulemaking; interagency coordination; and outreach and education for calendar year 2022.
Per Politico, DOJ's review of bank mergers will refocus its enforcement of American legal precedence by limiting big bank mergers to maintain as much competition as possible. The goal is to revive the DOJ's practice of issuing competitive factors reports. Going forward, the DOJ will look, for example, "to ensure that customers have the ability to choose among different types of lenders, such as retail banks, small business banks, and large- and mid-size business banks in any transaction."
Lillous Ann Shoemaker, president and general counsel of Magnolia State Bank, was recently appointed to The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation Advisory Committee on Community Banking, which was established in 2009. Shoemaker is the first Mississippian to serve on the Advisory Committee.
The NFL announced $78 million in borrowing from 16 MDI's and CDFI's, 10 of which are CDBA members. The NFL is establishing relationships with diverse financial institutions to provide new economic opportunities typically only available to larger financial institutions and to increase the diversity of its banking partners. Additionally, the new business opportunities will help fund growth, increase investment back into the communities they serve and create broader visibility for the institutions themselves.
Several large banks and other companies and foundations have secured $1 billion of committed deposits for financial institutions that focus on underserved communities, but organizers say those efforts are still in their early stages.
CDBA Advocates for Environmental Justice in Marginalized Communities
The African American Alliance of CDFI CEOs (The Alliance) is excited to announce that Community Development Bankers Association (CDBA) has joined the Community Builders of Color Coalition (The Coalition). Together with CDBA, The Alliance and other Coalition members will fight for equity in the EPA’s administration of the Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund (GGRF), advocating that at least 40% of awarded capital benefit disadvantaged communities, mainly minority and low-income populations that have been disproportionately impacted by the effects of climate change.
After an introduction through CDBA, Optus Bank partners with CNote's Impact Cash Program in order to increase deposit levels and elevate its visibility. "Impact Cash was exactly what Optus was looking for," said Dominik. "Finding a new source of deposits that came from impact-minded corporations at low cost balanced the equity investments we received and allowed us to turn out more investments into the community to create impact."
Senators John Hickenlooper (D-CO) and Bill Cassidy (R-LA) are the newest members of the Senate Caucus. The Newly formed caucus has already proved instrumental in guiding the national policy conversation - On January 19, Mark R. Warner (D-VA) and Mike Crapo (R-ID), co-chairs of the bipartisan Senate Community Development Finance Caucus (CDFC), sent a letter to U.S. Department of Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen urging the department to consider all comments received in response to the CDFI application and Annual Certification and Data Collection Report (ACR).
Climate First Bank CEO, Ken LaRoe, has published an open letter directed to state policy makers proposing and adopting new legislation to limit or prohibit state governments from ESG investment.
Lawmakers from both parties say the Federal Reserve needs legislative authority to issue a digital dollar, but the two sides have so far been unable to find a balance between privacy and security that could overcome the partisan divide.