NEW YORK (Legal Newsline) — New York Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced March 6 that Royal Bank of Scotland will pay $500 million after allegations of deceptive practices and misleading conduct in in the sale of residential mortgage-backed securities (RMBS) in the lead-up to the financial crisis.
“While the financial crisis may be behind us, New Yorkers are still feeling the effects of the housing crash,” Schneiderman said in a statement. “Home values plummeted. Vacant homes consumed neighborhoods. And, for many New Yorkers, affordable housing fell out of reach. [This] settlement is another important step in our comprehensive effort to help New Yorkers rebuild their lives and communities. I am proud of the extraordinary housing programs these settlements have funded across New York, from Brookhaven to Buffalo – and today’s settlement will fund even more community revitalization initiatives for years to come.”
This is the sixth major financial institution that Scheiderman’s office has settled with since 2012, when President Barack Obama appointed him co-chair of the RMBS working group. To date Schneiderman has recovered more than $3.7 billion in cash and consumer relief from these settlements.
“We are so thrilled that Schneiderman continues to push the financial services industry to do right by New Yorkers,” Christie Peale, CEO of the Center for NYC Neighborhoods, said in a statement. “The resources [he] has delivered to New York state over the past six years have been critical to helping families keep their homes while also making our communities vibrant for the next generations of New Yorkers.”