Advocacy group files protest against Banknorth-TD merger

PORTLAND – A consumer advocacy group in New York is objecting to Banknorth Group Inc.’s proposed merger with a Canadian bank because it says Banknorth underserves minority and low-income consumers.

Inner City Press, based in the Bronx, said Monday it has filed a 15-page protest with the Federal Reserve Bank of New York.

Matthew Lee, executive director of ICP, said Banknorth has rejected loan applications from low- and moderate-income customers, blacks and Latinos at disproportionately high rates. The bank has also provided loans to pawn shops and check-cashing firms, which can be involved in predatory practices, Lee said.

In its protest, Inner City Press is asking for public hearings on the merger. The Federal Reserve board makes the final decision on the transaction.

“Often by a spotlight being shined on these issues, the institutions see it in their own interest to improve lending practices in underserved communities and cease lending to predatory lenders,” Lee said.

Banknorth spokesman Jeff Nathanson said the bank would not respond to the specifics of the complaint. “Any issues raised we’ll address as part of the regulatory review process,” he said.

Banknorth and TD Bank Financial Group announced in August that TD Bank would buy a controlling 51 percent stake in Banknorth Group for $3.8 billion.

Banknorth, which has headquarters in Portland, has more than 350 branches in New England and upstate New York and assets of $29 billion. TD Bank, based in Toronto, has assets of nearly $240 billion and more than 1,000 branches across Canada.

In reviewing the proposed merger, ICP looked at the bank’s mortgage refinance loans to blacks and Latinos in Hartford and New Haven, Conn.; Albany, N.Y.; and Boston and Lowell, Mass. It examined loan records for low- and moderate-income customers in Portland and Glen Falls, N.Y.

In all those markets, loan denials were higher than they should have been compared to other banks serving the same areas, Lee said.

Banknorth has also made loans to a pawn shop and check-cashing company, the types of companies known for charging high interest rates to low-income consumers, Lee said.

“We want Banknorth to state its standards,” he said.

Banknorth Group’s banking subsidiaries include Peoples Heritage in Maine, Bank of New Hampshire, Banknorth Massachusetts, Banknorth Vermont, Banknorth Connecticut and Evergreen Bank in upstate New York.