PNC Financial Services Group has agreed to pay federal agencies $35 million to resolve allegations that National City Bank, which it acquired in 2009, systematically overcharged black and Hispanic mortgage borrowers, the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette reported today. The settlement follows a two-year investigation by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), culminating in a consent order filed in U.S. District Court today. The order requires court approval. The CFPB found that Cleveland-based National City, from 2002-08, violated the Fair Housing Act and the Equal Credit Opportunity Act when it added points to some 75,000 loans to black and Hispanic borrowers "not based on borrower risk, but because of their race or national origin," according to a Department of Justice press release.
