PHILADELPHIA–Citadel Federal Credit Union here is opening its first branch in this city as it expands into an underserved market and also fulfills a settlement it reached with the Justice Department related to a discrimination complaint.
The $6.2-billion Citadel FCU is opening the branch in West Philadelphia’s Overbrook Park neighborhood.
“We’re excited. Some main-line financial institutions have reset away from urban areas. But [Citadel] said this is a neighborhood worth investing in,” City Councilmember Curtis Jones told the Philadelphia Inquirer.
Meeting With Credit Union
Jones, whose district includes the Overbrook Park neighborhood, met with Citadel leaders to review possible branch locations after the credit union agreed in 2024 to expand its 24-branch suburban office network into Philadelphia and to subsidize mortgage loans in the city’s poorer neighborhoods as part of the settlement, according to the Inquirer.
Citadel FCU operates in the suburbs of Philadelphia with branches in Chester, Montgomery, Delaware and Bucks counties.
‘Redlining’ Alleged
But an October 2024 complaint with the Justice Department argued that the credit union was “redlining” by failing to follow through with its 2006 promise to add branches in Philadelphia, after changes had been approved to its field of membership, the Inquirer reported.
“As a result, Citadel agreed to open three city branches andaccess to mortgage, home improvement, and home refinance loans for residents of majority-Black and Hispanic communities in Philadelphia,” the report stated.
The Inquirer added that the Overbrook Park location is the first branch on the list.
‘Not Done’
“We’re not done,” CFCU CEO Bill Brown told the publication, adding the 268,000-member CU is exploring other sites in the city for new branches.
Besides banking services, Brown told the Inquirer the branch will provide meeting space for neighborhood businesses and the community.
Overbrook Park is already home to a branch of Philadelphia’s Police and Fire Federal Credit Union, the report added.
