Banks That Redline Communities, Back Slumlords, Finance Fossil Fuels, and Fund Immigrant Detention Dis-Honored
Public Bank NYC Coalition Calls on City to Divest from Wall Street and Establish a Public Bank
New York, NY – As Wall Street profits soar while New Yorkers face a sharply rising cost of living, mounting debt, displacement, and environmental injustice, community groups and elected officials today named New York City’s “Worst Banks” at a mock awards ceremony outside a Citibank branch in Lower Manhattan.
Hosted by the Public Bank NYC coalition, the annual Worst Banks Awards highlight how banks that receive billions of dollars in New York City municipal deposits continue to harm New Yorkers, redline and disinvest from neighborhoods, fuel climate destruction, and profit from incarceration and exploitation.
“Public money should work for the public good,” said Katy Lasell, State Campaigns Coordinator at New Economy Project, which coordinates the Public Bank NYC coalition. “Instead of depositing public dollars in big banks that systematically harm people, communities, and the planet, New York City needs a public bank that reinvests in New Yorkers and their communities.”
This year’s award recipients include:
- Lifetime Aggrievement Award: Citibank
- Worst Slumlord Backer: Flagstar Bank
- Worst Funders of Fossil Fuels: JPMorgan Chase & Bank of America
- Inhumanitarian Award (for financing immigrant detention): Citizens Bank
- Worst Redliner of Communities of Color: Keybank & Wells Fargo
Citibank received this year’s Lifetime Aggrievement Award for its role in enabling the Trump administration’s unlawful seizure of $80 million in New York City public funds, alongside the bank’s decades-long record of racial lending disparities, financial misconduct, and public harm. Speakers also pointed to Citibank’s $200 million securitization deal involving DailyPay, a fintech lender currently being sued by the New York Attorney General for making illegal payday loans.
The Worst Slumlord Backer Award went to Flagstar Bank, formerly New York Community Bank, for its history of financing some of New York City’s most notorious landlords. The ceremony also included an “In Memoriam” segment for now-defunct Signature Bank, featuring violin music and shining a light on the bank’s role in numerous predatory equity schemes that destabilized rent-regulated housing. Many of Signature’s former loans are now held by Flagstar.
“Banks routinely fund bad-acting landlords and then claim ignorance when tenants are pushed out through excessive construction dust, illegal building practices, and other predatory tactics,” said Jodie Leidecker of Cooper Square Committee. “These practices are repeated violations of the Community Reinvestment Act. It’s time not only to hold banks accountable, but to build a better alternative for our public money by creating a public bank.”
JPMorgan Chase and Bank of America were named Worst Funders of Fossil Fuels for their continued financing of fossil fuel expansion. JPMorgan Chase was the world’s largest fossil fuel financier in 2024, committing $53.5 billion to fossil fuel companies, while Bank of America recently rolled back a policy that had prohibited financing new coal mines and coal-fired power plants.
“The Worst Banks Awards shine a spotlight on the big banks that continue to pour billions into fossil fuel projects, accelerating climate change while our communities pay the price,” said Kyle Giller, staff attorney at NYPIRG. “New Yorkers deserve a public bank that puts our money to work for climate solutions, affordable housing, and local economic stability—not Wall Street’s dirty investments.”
The inaugural Inhumanitarian Award went to Citizens Bank for its financing of CoreCivic, a private prison company operating immigrant detention facilities with documented histories of violence and neglect.
KeyBank and Wells Fargo were recognized as Worst Redliners of Communities of Color. The groups cited KeyBank’s documented racial lending disparities and Wells Fargo’s continued branch redlining, noting that the bank operates just one branch in the Bronx—NYC’s most underbanked borough—which is located in Riverdale, the borough’s most affluent neighborhood
“Why should our city continue to do business with banks that won’t even open branches in our neighborhoods?” asked Linda Levy, of the Lower East Side People’s Federal Credit Union. “Big banks have systematically failed to serve communities of color across the city. A public bank would put our public money to work by partnering with responsible lenders like us, which have always been there for New Yorkers, to expand financial services in communities that need it the most.”
The ceremony featured red-carpet-style visuals, golden “Worst Banks” statues, testimony from tenants in buildings financed by major banks who described mold, disrepair, and unsafe conditions, and remarks from coalition members and elected officials.
The event comes amid growing calls from New Yorkers, community groups, and community development financial institutions for New York City to establish a public bank that would hold municipal deposits and reinvest in urgent community needs—from permanently affordable housing and small businesses to renewable energy and affordable financial services.