By Matthew Russell Lee, Patreon Podcast 2 3 5
SDNY COURTHOUSE, Jan 23 – After months of preliminaries, the trial of Stephen Calk for conspiracy to trade his bank's loans to Paul Manafort for the Secretary of the Army position began. Inner City Press live tweeted, here, previous coverage here, podcast here
After mere hours, the jury found him guilty. Inner City Press verdict tweet here; in front of 40 Foley Square, Calk refused questions (including on his bank and desire of UN Ambassador position) and was whisked off in a black car. Video here. Sentencing was set. Podcast here.
Jump cut to January 2026 when this appeared on the Federal Reserve's website:
"The Stephen M. Calk 2025 Trust, Houston, Texas; to become a savings and loan holding company by acquiring National Bancorp Holdings, Inc., and thereby indirectly acquiring The Federal Savings Bank, both of Chicago, Illinois. 10 Chicago"
Can a convicted felon be part of the ownership structure of an FDIC insured bank? Does it being a trust change anything?
The Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago does not list an email address to request information or copies of applications. They should just be put on the Internet, Fair Finance Watch and Inner City Press suggested - and emailed 4 af FRBChi
Days later, a portion of the application was provided. Surprised, FFW filed this:
This is a first timely comment opposing the application by The Stephen M. Calk 2025 Trust...
Stephen Calk was indicted for, and in July 2021 was convicted of financial institution bribery and conspiracy to commit financial institution bribery. In the understanding of many, the conviction - or even before, given the evidence - would have led to an order of prohibition.
But after waiting some time for a copy of the "public' portion of the application, we learn of a September 2023 letter from the Federal Reserve Bank of Chicago to Mr. Calk, with heavy redactions - and now in 2026 this application, which we are opposing. For the record, this FOIA request has been submitted through the Fed's FOIA portal:
"This is a FOIA request for all withheld portions of the pending application by the Stephen M. Calk Trust re The Federal Savings Bank - given the Mr. Calk was convicted of financial institution bribery and conspiracy to commit financial institution bribery in July 2021, the redactions to page 2 of the FRB of Chicago's September 5, 2023 letter to Calk are inappropriate, as are the other redactions to and withholdings from the regulations. Given the irregularities here - including a felon being allowed to retain ownership since July 2021 of a financial institution, and being considering to continue ownership through a trustee who is already on the board of directors of another bank, Customers Bank, this is also a FOIA request for all FRS records concerning Mr. Calk and The Federal Savings Bank since May 2019 when the case resulting in the felony conviction was indicted by the grand jury. Response should be expedited as the application's comment period is set to expire on February 9."
We will comment more once the needed documents are provided.
Also, for the record, Fair Finance Watch has been monitoring The Federal Saving Bank and finds that in 2025 in Illinois it made 759 mortgage loans to whites while denying only 86 applications from whites, while making only 98 loans to African Americans and denying fully 27 applications from African Americans. This is disparate.
In New York State in 2024, The Federal Savings bank made 332 mortgage loans to whites while denying only 62 applications from whites, while making only 154 loans to African Americans and denying fully 19 applications from African Americans.
Nationwide in 2024 The Federal Savings Bank made 4285 mortgage loans to whites while denying only 760 applications from whites, while making only 934 loans to African Americans and denying fully 239 applications from African Americans. This is disparate.
Finally, for now, while not conceding that this belated trusteeship structure would comply with the law and good policy, the proposed trustee is listed on the board of directors of another bank, Consumers Bank - we will have more on this when the documents, requested the day after the FRB of Chicago belatedly provided us the public portion of the application, are provided.
The application should not be approved
On February 7, 2022 Calk was sentenced to a year and a day - but got bail pending appeal.
Two years later, with Calk still not in prison, on February 22, 2024 his lawyers wrote in. Letter on Patreon here.
On March 4, Judge Schofield denied Calk's motion, and set a surrender date: "ORDERED that Defendant shall surrender for service of sentence at the institution designated by the Bureau of Prisons by 2:00 P.M. on April 18, 2024.
On December 2, 2025 Calk's counsel wrote in asking to eliminate the last year of supervised release, saying the US Attorney has no objection.
And on December 9, it was granted: "as to Stephen M. Calk, Application Granted. Defendant Calk's term of supervision is terminated effective today.(Signed by Judge Lorna G. Schofield on 12/9/2025)."
The case is US v. Calk, 19-cr-366 (Schofield)
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