by Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Book Substack
FEDERAL COURTHOUSE, Dec 22– Fair Finance Watch filed a FOIA request with the OCC in September about Erebor's charter applications.
This takes place as the regulators, led by the FDIC, are seeking to eliminate public notice and limit public comment. See, e.g., American Banker, Sept 10, 2025, "The FDIC is taking the 'community' out of CRA enforcement," by Matthew R. Lee, here
Back on October 15 the Comptroller bragged, "
"The OCC granted preliminary conditional approval to Erebor Bank after thorough review of its application. In granting this charter, the OCC applied the same rigorous review and standards applied to all charter applications.
“Erebor is the first de novo bank to receive a preliminary conditional approval since I arrived at the OCC. I am committed to a dynamic and diverse federal banking system, and our decision today is a first but important step in living up to that commitment,” said Comptroller of the Currency Jonathan V. Gould.
But he's rubberstamping and protecting legacy banks too, and not only "Community Banks."
On December 22 - five weeks after approving the Erebor application, the OCC wrote to Inner City Press, "Thank you for your continued patience regarding your request 2025-00682-F. We are actively working on your request and making every effort to provide a response as soon as possible."
Weeks AFTER the approval? Back in September, Inner City Press requested: This is a request under FOIA for the exhibits (mis) labeled "Confidential" in the application for the proposed Erebor Bank. The applicants, who have stated publicly that the proposed bank would lending not only to AI but to weaponry / military, have withheld almost all exhibits and information about their proposal, including even the names of the directors, organizers, executives and principal shareholders. This is a FOIA request, then, for all of the exhibits. This is also a request for all record reflecting communication by or within the OCC with or about Erebor and its unidentified proposed directors, organizers, executives and principal shareholders. As explained on recent FOIA requests, it is not limited to communication with the applicant but includes internal OCC record that are not exempt under FOIA."
Five week after approval, no records. The OCC hits new lows daily. Watch this site.
***
Your support means a lot. As little as $5 a month helps keep us going and grants you access to exclusive bonus material on our Patreon page. Click here to become a patron.
Feedback: Editorial [at] innercitypress.com
