Five US banks will pay authorities and borrowers $25 billion to settle claims related to the illegal alienation of Americans' homes. Thus, an end was put to a process that had lasted two years, during which federal and local supervisory authorities identified a number of violations in the mortgage industry.

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Negotiations on this issue between federal officials, state prosecutors and major banks began in 2010. after it became clear that documents on the alienation of the homes of Americans who were behind on their mortgage payments were signed with violations. In particular, financial organizations were accused of failing to comply with legal procedures and taking away housing for formal reasons, for example, due to minor delays in payments.

According to Reuters , the agreement was supported by 49 American states and affected such large financial institutions as Bank of America, Wells Fargo, JPMorgan Chase, Citigroup and Ally Financial, which account for 55% of all mortgage loans issued in the United States. Under its terms, banks are required to pay $25 billion to refinance the debt of those borrowers whose debt exceeds the value of their home.

As experts note, this is the largest deal between business and the state since 1998, when the country's leading tobacco companies agreed to pay the authorities of 46 states more than $200 billion for harm caused to the health of citizens. However, this is a drop in the bucket for the US housing market, where prices have fallen by a third compared to their pre-crisis peak. Every fifth mortgage borrower in the United States has a loan balance that exceeds the current cost of housing by an average of $50,000. The total negative difference is estimated at $700 billion.

The RBC daily publication indicates that US authorities will withdraw claims from banks related to unfair practices in the alienation of houses, which will reduce the legal risks of financial companies, due to which many investors avoid their shares. But everything is not so simple; the authorities intend to leave open the possibility of bringing criminal charges against banks, as well as lawsuits related to securitization cases. Individual homeowners will also be able to sue banks. It noted that bank profits will not be affected by the agreement, since many of the loans it covers have already been written off their balance sheets.

US authorities ordered the country's 5 largest banks to pay $25 billion