Responsible Banking

About

Banks are key community financial institutions, with an obligation under the Community Reinvestment Act (CRA) to lend and provide services equitably, and to reinvest in the areas where they do business. Too often, however, banks do not act as responsibly as they should, and underserve or even harm low- and moderate-income New Yorkers, people of color, immigrants, and other marginalized populations.

Why This Matters

Banks matter to people and communities; people need a place to do their banking, and community groups need financing to support their missions to build affordable housing, increase access to jobs, and more. Responsible banking ensures that these financial institutions are being held accountable to our neighborhoods, offering New Yorkers access to banking and credit, including small business loans or loans to buy an affordable home. It also ensures that tenants are not at-risk of harassment, fueled by speculative loans.

What We're Doing

ANHD is holding banks accountable to the New York City communities they serve to ensure just and equitable banking through policy research, coalition building, and organizing and advocacy.

Recognizing that the CRA only works if the community gets involved, we provide original research, including our annual “State of Bank Reinvestment in NYC” report, and regularly submit comments on CRA exams, as well as advocate for banks to have forward-looking CRA plans at the time of mergers.

We are tackling the “predatory equity” crisis by using sophisticated building finance and market research to identify the most-at risk buildings, and working with our network of organizing groups to proactively outreach to banks and ensure their lending practices are sound. We are also advocating for banks to adopt principles of responsible multifamily lending to ensure that their lending does not fuel displacement.

Check out the associated projects below for more information on how we are fighting for responsible banking.

Projects