New bank branch openings leave behind minority communities

Bank branch openings in U.S. leave behind minority neighborhoods - study People wearing protective face masks walk as the global outbreak of the coronaviruses COVID 19 continues, in the financial district of New York.

The Committee for Better Banks, an advocacy group, said the opening of new U.S. bank branches is leaving behind minority communities despite racial equality pledges from lenders.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation FDIC said that the 14 largest U.S. consumer banks opened 4,130 new branches from January 2010 to December 2021. 61% were in upper or middle-income, predominantly white neighborhoods, while only 15% of new branches were opened in low- to moderate-income minority communities. There were only 6% of the new sites from upper-income minority communities.

Nick Weiner, a committee organizer who was the lead researcher for the report, said it was "absolutely think it deserves more scrutiny." He said that the disparities in branch openings raise critical questions about access to key banking services, as well as the alarming speed of branch closures during the COVID-19 epidemic.

The study also mapped out openings in major U.S. cities. It found New York had the most over the 11 year period, with only 15% in minority or low- to moderate-income areas. Similar patterns were found in Houston, Boston, Dallas, and Chicago. In Minneapolis, no banks were opened in middle or upper-income minority neighborhoods.

The committee is comprised of bank workers, community and consumer advocacy groups, and labor organizations.

Tasia Barnes, a Wells Fargo branch banker in Fort Myers, Florida, said the job is to help customers and set them up for financial success. It requires face-to- face conversations and human connection that can only happen in a physical banking environment.