On November 28, 2023, the Bureau issued an order against Bank of America, N.A., which is a national bank headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina with branches and ATMs located in 38 states and the District of Columbia. The Home Mortgage Disclosure Act (HMDA) and its implementing regulation, Regulation C, require financial institutions to ask applicants for most mortgage loans for their race, ethnicity, and sex. The Bureau found that between 2016 and late 2020, at least hundreds of Bank of America’s loan officers were not asking applicants for their race, ethnicity, and sex, as required by law, and instead falsely recorded that the applicants chose not to provide the information. The Bank’s conduct violated HMDA, Regulation C, and the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010. The order requires Bank of America to pay a $12 million civil money penalty and to develop policies and procedures to ensure compliance with HMDA and Regulation C, including recording and auditing phone applications to make sure that HMDA data are accurately collected and recorded.
Post Order/Post Judgment