Bank Fraud

2. Are there any banking programs that seem more suspect than others to improper lending practices?

In recent years there have been successful whistleblower Bank Fraud cases involving the following Government insured bank lending programs: the Federal Housing Authority (FHA) program for home mortgages; the Small Business Administration (SBA) program for small business loans; the Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD)program for mortgage refinancing; and the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Farm Service Agency (FSA) program for agricultural loans.

3. What is FIRREA and how is it connected to whistleblower Bank Fraud litigation?

FIRREA is the acronym for the Financial Institutions Reform, Recovery, and Enforcement Act of 1989. It is a federal law enacted to address the savings and loan crisis of the 1980s. FIRREA creates civil and criminal liability for numerous illegal and improper banking practices, such as bribery, theft/embezzlement, false bank entries/reports, bank fraud, false statements and overvaluing assets/securities. A person who provides original information to the Government about FIRREA violations can be eligible for a share of any financial recovery.

4. Is there a jurisdiction that is particularly good for bringing Bank Fraud cases?

The U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York (headquartered in Manhattan, NY) has aggressively and successfully handled some of the largest and most significant Bank Fraud cases.

5. Are there other types of financial institution fraud that whistleblowers should keep an eye out for.

Yes, there are a number of other Government insurance programs that are also subject to fraud and abuse by financial institutions and/or insured business and persons. These include the Federal Crop Insurance Corporation (FCIC) Program; and the National Flood Insurance Program (NFIP).