City National Bank Agrees To Record Redlining Settlement

According to a consent order obtained by the DOJ, LA-based City National Bank, a subsidiary of Royal Bank of Canada, agreed to pay a $31 million settlement over allegations that it engaged in redlining from 2017 through at least 2020. The lending discrimination allowed it to avoid providing mortgage-lending services to majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhoods in Los Angeles County, and discouraged residents in those neighborhoods from obtaining mortgage loans. According to the DOJ, this is the largest redlining settlement in the department’s history. City National agreed to invest $29.5 million in a loan subsidy fund for residents of majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhoods, and an additional $1.75 million will be dedicated to advertising, outreach and financial education in majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhoods. It also pledged to open one new branch in a majority-Black and Hispanic neighborhood and look at additional opportunities for expansion.