Kevin McCoy

USA TODAY

A California bank linked to Steven Mnuchin, President-elect Trump's national finance chairman and a potential pick for Treasury secretary, has been hit with a new federal complaint of alleged redlining and other discrimination against minorities.

CIT Bank, its parent company, CIT Group (CIT), and its OneWest Bank predecessor discriminated in mortgage lending, decisions on branch locations and closings, and other financial actions, according to the complaint filed Wednesday with the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development by groups that advocate for fair housing and equal access to credit.

Just two African-American borrowers received mortgages originated by OneWest during 2014-2015 in the bank's service area across Los Angeles and Orange counties, the California Reinvestment Coalition and Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California charged. The low number of mortgage loans to minority borrowers and other practices violated the U.S. Fair Housing Act, the groups alleged.

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Steven Mnuchin, a former Goldman Sachs partner who's now CEO of private hedge fund sponsor Dune Capital Management LP, is a member of CIT Group's board of directors. He headed fundraising for Trump's election victory over Hillary Clinton and now is viewed as a potential pick for Treasury secretary.

"Our analysis of OneWest suggests the bank has no significant branch presence in communities of color, and not surprisingly, its home loans to borrowers and communities of color are low in absolute terms, low compared to its peer banks, and low when compared to what one would expect given the size of the Asian-American, African-American and Latino populations in California," said Kevin Stein,a deputy director at the California Reinvestment Coalition.

The study also showed that most OneWest-owned foreclosed homes in minority communities looked abandoned, while those in white communities were well-maintained, said Caroline Peattie, executive director of Fair Housing Advocates of Northern California.

"CIT is committed to fair lending and works hard to meet the credit needs of all communities and neighborhoods we serve," the company said in a statement Thursday.

The complaint filed with HUD alleged that OneWest's branch location decisions "appear to avoid communities of color." For instance, the bank had 52 Los Angeles branches in all, but none in either Asian-majority or African-American-majority tracts, and eight in Hispanic majority tracts, the study showed.

African-Americans account for 6.2% of Los Angeles' total population but received 1.7% of the mortgages OneWest originated in 2015, the analysis found.

If HUD accepts the complaint, investigates and substantiates the alleged Fair Housing Act violations, the bank could be charged with a civil complaint in either federal court or by an administrative law judge who works for the agency.

Separately, The California Reinvestment Coalition and other groups previously urged federal regulators to investigate disproportionately high rates of OneWest foreclosures in minority communities.

OneWest, now CIT Bank, grew from the wreckage of California-based IndyMac Bank, one of the largest bank collapses during the national financial crisis. Mnuchin led an investor group that bought IndyMac from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation in early 2009 for roughly $1.55 billion. The investment group was backed by hedge fund manager John Paulson, computer manufacturer Michael Dell, international business magnate George Soros, private equity investor Christopher Flowers and others.

Mnuchin became OneWest's chairman after the 2009 acquisition.

Follow USA TODAY reporter Kevin McCoy on Twitter: @kmccoynyc