WASHINGTON – An Arkansas bank was assessed a civil penalty by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) for misrepresentations about certain Veterans Administration (VA) refinance loan terms.
The Bank of England, Ark., a city with a population of approximately 2,800, entered into a consent agreement to pay a civil penalty of $129,800, the FDIC reported.
The bank’s loan officers in the Bloomfield, Mich., loan production office misrepresented to consumers that “certain VA refinance loan terms were available when they were not,” behavior that constituted deception.
The FDIC announced it levied the fine “after taking into account the appropriateness of the penalty with respect to the size of financial resources and good faith of the bank, the gravity of the violations, the history of previous violations by the bank, and such other matters as justice may require…”
The bank also was forbidden from “seeking or accepting indemnification from any third party for the civil money penalty assessed and paid in this matter.”
As of Oct. 22, the Bank of England, Ark., reported assets of $585 million, deposits of $429 million, net income of almost $26 million, 151 offices and more than 1,260 employees, according to iBanknet.