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Direct Dial: (212) 403-1127


Direct Fax: (212) 403-2127
E-Mail: PARobinson@wlrk.com

March 31, 2016


Via E-Apps
Mr. Allen M. Brown
Banking Supervisor
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland
1455 E. 6th Street
Cleveland, OH 44114
Re:

Application to the Federal Reserve Board by Huntington Bancshares Incorporated


to Acquire FirstMerit CorporationResponse to Concerns of a Commenter

Dear Mr. Brown:


This letter responds to statements in an e-mail of March 19, 2016, from the public (the
March 19 E-mail) that the Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland (the Reserve Bank) forwarded
to us concerning the application (the Application) by Huntington Bancshares Incorporated
(Huntington) to the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (the Board) for prior
approval to acquire FirstMerit Corporation (FirstMerit), pursuant to Sections 3(a)(3) and
3(a)(5) of the Bank Holding Company Act (the Proposed Transaction). The March 19 E-mail:
(1) expressed concern about the number of planned consolidations and closings of branches of
Huntingtons subsidiary bank, The Huntington National Bank (Huntington Bank), and

W/2645618v3

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 2
FirstMerits subsidiary bank, FirstMerit Bank, National Association (FirstMerit Bank), that
Huntington has publicly disclosed in connection with the Proposed Transaction, 1 (2) criticized
Huntington Banks lending record based on data filed in 2014 under the Home Mortgage
Disclosure Act (HMDA), (3) requested an extension of the public comment period on the
Application, and (4) requested a public hearing on the Application. Huntington appreciates the
opportunity to respond to these matters raised in the March 19 E-mail.
I.

Branch Consolidations and Closings

The March 19 E-mail states that the closure of more than 100 branches, including a
number 2 in the Cleveland, Akron and Canton areas of Ohio, would cause harm. Huntington
believes that the FirstMerit Bank and Huntington Bank customers in Illinois, Michigan, Ohio,
Pennsylvania and Wisconsin will be well served by the resulting branch network following the
consummation of the Proposed Transaction. As discussed below, the majority of the branch
actions are short-distance consolidations and the substantial majority of the branch closures
involve modest distances to the recipient branches. The Proposed Transaction will result in
public benefits that outweigh any limited inconvenience that might result from the planned
branch actions.
A. The strong majority of the consolidations/closures are short-distance
consolidations.
As discussed in the Application, due to some overlap in the legacy branch networks of
Huntington Bank and FirstMerit Bank and in order to reduce redundancy and make the delivery
of customer services more efficient, Huntington Bank expects to consolidate or close 107
licensed locations, including: (a) 105 branches (75 legacy FirstMerit Bank branches and 30
legacy Huntington Bank branches), (b) one legacy FirstMerit Bank limited-service drive-up
location and (c) one legacy FirstMerit Bank limited-service facility that services Wealth and
Commercial clients.
Of the 107 consolidations/closings, a strong majority (62 of 107 or 58%) are shortdistance branch consolidations under the OCCs rules. 3 Under the applicable interagency
1

Huntington disclosed the branches of Huntington Bank or FirstMerit Bank that are planned to be consolidated or
closed after consummation of the Proposed Transaction in Exhibits 1719 of the Application, as well as in the
application that Huntington Bank filed with the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency (the OCC) for prior
approval to merge with FirstMerit Bank, pursuant to the Bank Merger Act and the National Bank Act (the Bank
Merger Application), and in the published newspaper notice of the Bank Merger Application, copies of which have
been submitted to the Board.
2

The March 19 E-Mail refers to nearly 50 branch closings in Cleveland, Akron and Canton. As discussed below,
Huntington Bank expects to consolidate 32 branches and to close 11 branches in these areas combined.
3

According to the OCCs regulations, a short-distance consolidation occurs when the receiving branch is within the
following distances to the consolidating branch: (1) one thousand foot-radius of the site if the consolidating branch

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 3
guidance from the Board, OCC and the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, a branch
consolidation is a movement of customer deposits within the same immediate neighborhood and,
therefore, does not substantially affect the nature of the business or customers served by the
consolidating branch. 4 In each of the 62 consolidations, the distance between the consolidating
branch and the receiving branch is two miles or less. In 59 of these consolidations (or 95%) the
distance between the consolidating and receiving branch is one mile or less, and in 41 of these
consolidations (or 66%) the distance is one-half mile or less.
The other 45 planned branch actions are considered to be closures. Of the 45 closures
(involving 43 branch locations and the two limited-service locations), a strong majority (25 of 45
or 56%) involve distances between the closing location and the receiving branch of two miles or
less, 10 (or 22%) involves distances of one mile or less and seven (or 16%) involve distances of
one-half mile or less.
The March 19 E-Mail specifically referenced branch closures in Cleveland, Akron and
Canton. Huntington Bank expects to consolidate/close 43 branches in the Cleveland, Akron and
Canton areas of Ohio combined, including 24 legacy FirstMerit Bank branches and 19 legacy
Huntington Bank branches. Of the 43 branch consolidations/closings in these areas, 32 (or 74%)
are short-distance consolidations under the OCCs rules. Of the 32 consolidations, all involve
distances between the consolidating and receiving branches of one mile or less and 21 (or 66%)
involve distances of one-half mile or less. Of the 11 branch closings in these areas, all involve
distances of less than two miles and three (or 27%) involve distances of less than one-half mile.
B. Huntington Bank has been very transparent in publicly disclosing its branch
consolidation/closure plans.
Huntington Bank has been very transparent with both its regulators and the public in
disclosing its branch consolidation/closure plans. Huntington publicly disclosed in the published
newspaper notice of the Bank Merger Application, copies of which have been submitted to the
Board, the addresses of the 107 Huntington Bank or FirstMerit Bank licensed locations that it
plans to consolidate or close after consummation of the Proposed Transaction. Additionally,
public Exhibits 1719 of the Application, as well as similar public exhibits in the Bank Merger
Act Application, contain detailed information about each consolidation/closure, including:
(a) the addresses (including the county) of the consolidating/closing branch, (b) the address
(including the county) of the branch that will receive the deposits of the consolidating/closing
branch, (c) the distance between the branches and (d) a detailed explanation of why the branch is

is located within a central city of an Metropolitan Statistical Area (an MSA); (2) one-mile radius of the site if the
consolidating branch is not located within a central city, but is located within an MSA; or (3) two-mile radius of the
site if the consolidating branch is not located within an MSA. 12 CFR 5.3(l).
4

Interagency Policy Statement Concerning Branch Closing Notices and Policies, June 18, 1999.

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 4
being consolidated/closed. Many of the explanations reference attached maps that further
illustrate the relationship between the consolidating/closing branch and the receiving branch.
C. Notices to affected customers and Huntington Banks careful considerations
in compliance with its branch closing/consolidation/relocation policy.
The factors that were used in identifying branches for consolidation or closure included:
(a) proximity to the nearest branch, (b) respective conditions and available services at the
consolidating/closing and recipient branch, (c) customer and community impact, and
(d) financial performance and future prospects of the branch. In addition, Huntington Bank
adheres to a comprehensive internal branch opening, closing, relocation and consolidation policy
to ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulatory guidance. That policy requires
compliance with the following requirements during the evaluation process:

Ensure compliance with applicable laws and regulatory guidance for branch
openings, closings, relocations and consolidations.

Conduct appropriate analysis of impacts of branch opening, closing, relocation and


consolidation activity on considerations related to the Community Reinvestment Act
(the CRA), considering the effect on the community, the ability of the bank to
provide service to the area and the presence of other financial institutions in the area.

Ensure that all branch changes are approved by Huntington Banks Board of
Directors or a committee or member of management as delegated by the Board.

Ensure that the necessary regulatory and client notices, applications and legal notices
are completed to comply with the regulations governing branching.

Escalate, as necessary, risk and compliance issues to the Chief Risk Officer and Legal
Regulatory Compliance Committee.

Huntington Bank will provide prior notices of any branch closures to the applicable
regulators and the customers in accordance with the applicable law, regulations and regulatory
guidance. Customers of branches to be consolidated also will receive prior notices of the
planned consolidation into other branches.
D. Detailed rationales and distance information are provided in the
Applications for each proposed branch consolidation or closure.
In most cases, the customer accounts of branches to be closed will be transferred to the
next nearest branch, either a legacy FirstMerit Bank branch or an existing Huntington Bank
branch. Accounts of customers of a branch to be consolidated will be transferred to the branch
designated as the surviving branch of the two consolidating branches. Exhibit 19 of the
Application (and a similar exhibit in the Bank Merger Act Application to OCC) contains detailed

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 5
information regarding each of these licensed location consolidations and closures, including:
(a) the addresses (including the county) of the consolidating/closing branch, (b) the address
(including the county) of the branch that will receive the deposits of the consolidating/closing
branch, (c) the distance between the branches and (d) a detailed explanation of why the branch is
being consolidated/closed. Many of the explanations reference attached maps that further
illustrate the relationship between the consolidating/closing branch and the receiving branch.
Below, we provide similar information for each branch that will be consolidated/closed that is
located in a low- to moderate-income (LMI) or majority-minority census tract.
1. Consolidations in LMI census tracts
Of the 62 short-distance branch consolidations, only 10 consolidate a branch located in an
LMI census tract. These consolidations are detailed below:
Location of Consolidating Branch

Location of Receiving Branch

Distance Between
the Branches

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


21 N. Beacon Blvd., Grand Haven,
Michigan 49417
(Ottawa County)
moderate-income census tract

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


1300 South Beacon Blvd., Grand
Haven, Michigan 49417
(Ottawa County)
middle-income census tract

0.87 mile

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


430 Northfield Rd., Bedford, Ohio
44146
(Cuyahoga County)
moderate-income census tract

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


5321 Warrensville Rd., Maple
Heights, Ohio 44137
(Cuyahoga County)
middle-income census tract

0.72 mile

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


11427 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland,
Ohio 44114
(Cuyahoga County)
moderate-income census tract

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


11457 Mayfield Road, Cleveland,
Ohio 44106
(Cuyahoga County)
moderate-income census tract

0.08 mile

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


6939 E. Broad St., Columbus, Ohio
43213
(Franklin County)
moderate-income census tract

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


6867 E. Broad Street, Columbus,
Ohio 43213
(Franklin County)
moderate-income census tract

0.07 mile

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 6
Location of Consolidating Branch

Location of Receiving Branch

Distance Between
the Branches

Legacy Huntington Bank Branch at:


1500 East Main Street, Kent, Ohio
44240
(Portage County)
low-income census tract

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


1729 State Rt. 59, Kent, Ohio 44240
(Portage County)
middle-income census tract

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


6550 N. Ridge Rd., Madison, Ohio
44057
(Lake County)
moderate-income census tract

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


6565 N. Ridge Rd., Madison, Ohio
44057
(Lake County)
moderate-income census tract

0.17 mile

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


58 S. Park Place, Painesville, Ohio
44077
(Lake County)
low-income census tract

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


56 Liberty St., Painesville, Ohio
44077
(Lake County)
low-income census tract

0.09 mile

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


3505 Lee Rd., Shaker Heights, Ohio
44120
(Cuyahoga County)
moderate-income census tract

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


17121 Chagrin Blvd., Shaker
Heights, Ohio 44120
(Cuyahoga County)
upper-income census tract

0.27 mile

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


411 Adams St., Toledo, Ohio 43604
(Lucas County)
moderate-income census tract

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


519 Madison Ave., Toledo, Ohio
43604
(Lucas County)
moderate-income census tract

0.16 mile

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


101 East Washington St., New
Castle, Pennsylvania 16101
(Lawrence County)
moderate- income census tract

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


11 S. Mill St., New Castle,
Pennsylvania 16101
(Lawrence County)
moderate-income census tract

0.09 mile

0.28 mile

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 7
Explanations:
Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at 21 N. Beacon Blvd., Grand Haven, Michigan
The consolidating FirstMerit Bank branch is in the town of Grand Haven, Michigan, where
customers primarily travel by car. The branch is at the corner of N. Beacon Blvd. and Columbus
Avenue. The FirstMerit Bank branch has very few deposits (less than $3 million) and a very low
number of teller transactions. Huntington Bank will continue to serve this community with three
branches within five minutes of the consolidating branch. The receiving Huntington Bank
branch is 0.87 mile from the consolidating FirstMerit Bank branch due south on Beacon Blvd.
(1300 S. Beacon Blvd.). It has five drive-thru teller lanes and a drive-up Automated Teller
Machine (ATM). In addition to the receiving Huntington Bank branch, there is also the nearby
Huntington Bank Spring Lake branch, which is 1.56 miles northeast of the consolidating branch
and the Grand Haven Meijer in-store branch, which is 1.69 miles to the south. Please see Map 1
in the Appendix, which illustrates the relationship of the consolidating FirstMerit Bank branch
and the Huntington Bank branches in the Grand Haven area.
Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at 430 Northfield Rd., Bedford, Ohio The
consolidating branch is located in a suburban area where customers primarily travel by car. The
consolidating branch is located in an older facility, in the out-lot of a Wal-Mart anchored center.
The Wal-Mart is reported to be closing in 2016. Huntington Bank will continue to serve this
community through the receiving Huntington Bank branch at 5321 Warrensville Rd., which is
only 0.72 mile away (just over a three-minute drive-time); the drive is relatively simple drive
west on Rockside Rd., then south on Dunham Road. The receiving Huntington Bank branch
offers full-service banking as well as extended hours for customer convenience. Huntington
Bank has recently added an additional walk-up ATM and a Teller Pod at the Southgate location.
We believe that the customer impact of consolidating the FirstMerit Bank location is minimized
because most of the customers using the consolidating branch live West of I-271 and South of
I-480, near the receiving Huntington Bank branch. Additionally, the existing Huntington Bank
Turney Dunham branch (2.72 miles away) offers drive-up convenience with three drive-thru
teller windows and a drive-up ATM; and there is a FirstMerit Bank branch located 2.14 miles
northeast of the consolidating branch at 4834 Richmond Road in Warrensville Heights, Ohio that
offers two drive-thru teller lanes and a drive-up ATM. The receiving Huntington Bank branch
has ample capacity to handle the additional traffic from the consolidating branch. Please see
Map 2 in the Appendix which illustrates the relationship of the branches in the area.
Legacy FirstMerit Bank Branch at 11427 Euclid Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio The
consolidating branch is in an urban area where customers either use cars or walk as their primary
modes of transportation. There is a dichotomy of customers in the area due to the large presence
of the Cleveland Clinic and University Hospital; doctors/faculty drive to/from work at the nearby
hospitals. In addition, Case Western Reserve University has a large pedestrian population. The
consolidating branch is newly opened in a recently constructed building and has struggled to
open accounts and draw customers. Huntington Bank will continue to serve this community
through the Huntington Bank branch at 11457 Mayfield Road (only 0.08 mile away, a short walk

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 8
or less than one-minute drive-time). The receiving Huntington Bank branch offers designated
parking for customers and has an existing deposit base of $29 million (versus less than $1
million at the consolidating branch). Please see Map 3 in the Appendix which illustrates the
relationship of the consolidating and receiving branches. We believe that the customer impact of
consolidating this location is minimized due to the close proximity and the low volume of
customers utilizing the existing FirstMerit Bank branch. The receiving Huntington Bank branch
has ample capacity to handle the additional traffic from the consolidating branch.
Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at 6939 E. Broad St., Columbus, Ohio The
consolidating facility is located in a suburban area of Columbus where customers primarily
travel by car. The consolidating branch is an in-line branch with no drive-thru located in the
same shopping center as the receiving Huntington Bank branch. The receiving branch is a fullservice in-store branch in a Giant Eagle that is located less than 400 feet from the consolidating
branch. Please see Map 4 in the Appendix A which illustrates the relationship of the
consolidating and receiving branches. The in-store branch has multiple teller stations and an
ATM and can sufficiently serve the expanded customer base. Compared to the consolidating
branch, the receiving in-store branch offers extended banking hours and is open seven days a
week and, as such, will positively impact customers. For customers needing drive-thru access,
there is another Huntington Bank branch with a five-lane drive-thru and drive-up ATM that is
only two miles (a four-minute drive) along Broad Street.
Legacy Huntington Bank branch at 1500 East Main Street, Kent, Ohio The
consolidating branch is in a suburban area, adjoining Kent State University. Customers
generally use a car as a means of transportation, but the student population is also likely to walk
between campus and neighboring businesses. The consolidating Huntington Bank branch is
located on a sub-standard site. The older branch is mid-block, sits back off the road and has oneway site circulation, limited parking, a one-lane drive-thru with no bypass and no drive-up ATM.
Huntington Bank will serve this community through the receiving FirstMerit Bank branch at
1729 State Rt. 59, which is located only 0.28 mile away (less than one-minute drive-time). This
location offers far superior visibility and access. It is on a corner out-lot of the Acme-anchored
shopping center (Cleveland/Akron grocer). The location offers two drive-thru lanes and a driveup ATM. It also has signalized access and multiple points of ingress/egress into the center, as
well as a bypass for drive-thru traffic. We believe that the customer impact of consolidating this
location is minimized by the superior facility located near one of the daily needs providers.
Students/pedestrians who may have walked to the consolidating Huntington Bank branch will
have the additional option of using a walk-up ATM at the corner of Route 59 (Main St.) and
Lincoln. This ATM is exterior and is located next to a campus bookstore, Starbucks and the
university bus/circulator stop. Please see Map 5 in the Appendix A which illustrates the
relationship of the branches and the ATM. The receiving FirstMerit Bank branch has ample
capacity to handle the additional traffic from the consolidating branch.
Legacy Huntington Bank branch at 6550 N. Ridge Rd., Madison, Ohio The
consolidating branch is located in a small town where customers travel primarily by car. The

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 9
consolidating Huntington Bank branch is only 0.17 mile (less than one-minute drive-time) from
the receiving FirstMerit Bank branch. In addition, the consolidating Huntington Bank branch is
located in the same center as a Huntington Bank Giant Eagle in-store branch. The consolidating
branch does not have signalized access, has an unattractive facade for a bank branch, three drivethru lanes and a drive-up ATM. Huntington Bank will serve this community through the
FirstMerit Bank receiving branch at 6565 N. Ridge Rd., which is located in the out-lot of a
Tractor Supply and Peebles (local grocer) anchored shopping center. There is signalized access
to the center, and the branch offers five drive-thru lanes and a drive-up ATM. We believe that
the customer impact of consolidating this location is minimized because of the close proximity as
well as the superior facility at the receiving FirstMerit Bank branch. Please see Map 6 in the
Appendix which illustrates the relationship of the consolidating and receiving branches and
shows the location of the nearby Huntington Bank Giant Eagle in-store branch. Additionally,
there is a Giant Eagle in-store branch only 0.17 mile away, which offers full service banking and
extended hours for added convenience. The receiving branch has ample capacity to handle the
additional traffic from the consolidating branch.
Legacy Huntington Bank branch at 58 S. Park Place, Painesville, Ohio The
consolidating branch is in a suburban area where customers travel primarily by car. The
consolidating Huntington Bank branch is located only 0.09 mile (less than one-minute drivetime) from the receiving FirstMerit Bank branch. Although the consolidating branch has three
drive-thru lanes and a drive-up ATM, the access to the branch off of S. Park Place (town square)
is not ideal; one-way circulation forces customers to enter from the town square and exit onto
E. Washington St. Further, there is limited street-side parking and shared parking in the rear
with a self-storage facility. Huntington Bank will serve this community through the receiving
FirstMerit Bank branch at 56 Liberty St., which offers a more prominent and much larger
building, visible from the town square. The receiving branch has 25,000 square feet of interior
space, ample parking, four drive-thru lanes and a drive-up ATM. We believe that the customer
impact of consolidating this location is minimized because customers in Painesville will be able
to utilize a more easily accessed branch which has ample capacity to handle increased volume.
Please see Map 7 in the Appendix A which illustrates the relationship of the consolidating and
receiving branches.
Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at 3505 Lee Rd., Shaker Heights, Ohio The
consolidating branch is in a dense suburban area where customers travel through a mixture of
cars, public transportation and on foot. The consolidating branch is located only 0.27 mile (less
than one-minute drive-time) to the Huntington Bank branch. The two branches are within
walking distance in shopping centers that front opposite sides of the same street. Although the
consolidating and receiving branches are located in different census tracts, the shopping centers
both serve the same neighborhood. The consolidating branch is located at the juncture of a busy
five-street intersection. The location is a smaller format building with limited parking and
challenging access; it has two drive-thru lanes and a drive-up ATM. Huntington Bank will
continue to serve this community through the Huntington Bank receiving branch at 17121
Chagrin Blvd. The receiving branch is a newer building in front of an adjoining retail/grocery

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 10
center with signalized access and multiple points of ingress/egress. Huntington Bank recognizes
that the receiving branch has only two drive-thru lanes and a drive-up ATM, which could
become busy. As a means of mitigating the capacity concerns, Huntington Bank will retain the
rights to the consolidating branch's drive-thru and will install additional drive-up ATMs. We
believe that the customer impact of consolidating this location is minimized because customers
will have the opportunity to utilize the receiving branchs and the consolidating branch's drivethru for transactions. This combination of branches will have the capacity to handle the
transaction needs of the consolidating branch. Huntington Bank also operates six other branches
within four miles of the consolidating branch. Please see Map 8 in the Appendix which
illustrates the relationship of the consolidating and receiving branches.
Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at 411 Adams St., Toledo, Ohio Huntington Bank
will continue to serve this community at the Huntington Bank receiving branch located on the
first floor of the Huntington Regional Headquarters building at 519 Madison Avenue. The
consolidating branch is only 0.16 mile away. Both branches are in the main part of downtown
Toledo where the two primary means of transportation are by foot or by car. The two locations
are only a four-minute walk or a one-minute drive apart and there is ample public parking around
the receiving branch. Please see Map 9 in the Appendix which illustrates the relationship of the
consolidating and receiving branches. The receiving Huntington Bank branch has sufficient
capacity to handle the additional traffic.
Legacy Huntington Bank branch at 101 East Washington St., New Castle,
Pennsylvania The consolidating Huntington Bank branch is located in downtown New Castle,
PA. It has a walk-up ATM, as well as two drive-thru teller lanes accessed from Sycamore
Street. Huntington Bank will continue to serve the downtown New Castle community with the
nearby FirstMerit Bank receiving branch. The receiving branch is a newer facility and is located
one block east of the consolidating Huntington branch at the corner of E. Washington Street and
S. Mill Street (only 0.09 mile away). The receiving FirstMerit Bank branch has two walk-up
ATMs, but does not have a drive-thru attached to the building, For this reason, Huntington Bank
will retain the current two drive-thru lanes on Sycamore Street from the consolidating branch;
only the lobby operations of the consolidating branch will be closed. As a result, there will be no
change to the drive-thru capacity or to the drive-thru location. Accordingly, the legacy
Huntington Bank branch customers will experience no change in their drive-thru service and the
legacy FirstMerit Bank branch customers will gain the convenience of drive-thru service. The
receiving branch and the retained drive-thru location have sufficient capacity to handle the
additional traffic. Please see Map 10 in the Appendix which illustrates the relationship of the
consolidating branch, the receiving branch and to the two drive-thru lanes on Sycamore Street.

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 11
2. Closures in LMI Census Tracts
Of the 45 closings, only three close a facility located in an LMI census tract (two are
branches and one is a limited service facility) and all three involve distances of 0.36 mile or less.
These closings are detailed below:
Location of Closing Branch

Location of Receiving Branch

Distance Between
the Branches

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


130 N. Jefferson Ave., Saginaw,
Michigan 48607
(Saginaw County)
low-income census tract

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


101 N. Washington Avenue,
Saginaw, Michigan 48607
(Saginaw County)
low-income census tract

0.21 mile

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


39 E. Market St., Akron, Ohio 44308
(Summit County)
low-income census tract

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


106 S. Main St., Akron, Ohio 44308
(Summit Country)
low-income census tract

0.22 mile

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


111 W. Rich St, Columbus, Ohio
43215
(Franklin County)
licensed limited-service facility
moderate-income census tract

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


17 S. High Street, Columbus, Ohio
43215
(Franklin County)
moderate-income census tract

0.36 mile

Explanations:
Legacy Huntington Bank branch at 130 N. Jefferson Ave., Saginaw, Michigan The
closing branch is located in the urban downtown of Saginaw, Michigan, where customers
primarily travel by car or on foot. Huntington Bank will serve this community through the
FirstMerit Bank receiving branch at 101 N. Washington Avenue, Saginaw, Michigan. The
receiving branch is less than 600 yards away, which is a five-minute walk or less than a oneminute drive. The receiving branch is a much more prominent location in a large office tower
located in the heart of the downtown. The closing branch is located four blocks east in the
middle of parking lots. Although the receiving branch has no drive-thru lanes versus two at the
closing branch, there is a FirstMerit Bank branch with five drive-thru lanes less than one mile
away on one of the main routes into downtown. The legacy FirstMerit Bank customers will not

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 12
see a change to the branch network in the downtown area and will have a net increase of two
branches in the Saginaw market. The legacy Huntington Bank customers will have a net
increase of one branch in the downtown and a net increase of eight branches in the market. Two
maps are included in the Appendix concerning this consolidation. Map 11-A shows the
relationship of the consolidating branch to the receiving branch. Map 11-B shows the
relationship of the consolidating branch to both the receiving branch and to the nearby branch
with a five-lane drive-thru.
Legacy Huntington Bank branch at 39 E. Market St., Akron, Ohio The closing
branch is in downtown Akron where customers primarily travel on foot, walking from nearby
buildings/businesses. The closing branch is located in a six-story building across from the
seven-story WKYC building. The closing branch has a limited presence in downtown Akron,
however, as it is located too far north, outside of the financial district. Further, the branch is
located in a maintenance-challenged building where Huntington Bank has been removing
colleagues due to on-going issues with the facility. The interior space is not customer-friendly
based on its lack of a teller line (tellers perform transactions sitting at desks). Huntington Bank
will continue to serve this community through the FirstMerit Bank receiving branch at 106 S.
Main St., which is located in the heart of the financial district. The branch is the current
Corporate Headquarters for FirstMerit Bank and has significant prominence and long-standing
history in downtown Akron. We believe that the customer impact of closing this location is
minimized by the fact that a pedestrian is able to traverse nearly the entire distance from the
closing to the receiving branch in underground tunnels connecting each of the buildings along
Main St. (0.22 mile away). The receiving branch will have ample capacity to handle the
additional traffic from the closing branch. Please see Map 12 in the Appendix which illustrates
the relationship of the downtown Akron facilities.
Legacy FirstMerit Bank Licensed Limited Service Facility at 111 W. Rich St,
Columbus, Ohio The closing facility is located in an urban, downtown area near other
commercial buildings. It is primarily used as a commercial lending facility without retail walkin traffic; the location only accepts deposits from commercial customers who may request to
make such a transaction. The Huntington Bank receiving branch at 17 S. High St., Columbus,
Ohio, is 0.36 mile away and is Huntington Bank's most prominent downtown branch. It is
located next to Huntingtons Corporate Headquarters. Given the limited scope of the services
offered at the closing facility as well as the proximity to the receiving branch, no impact to the
community is expected. There are also two other Huntington Bank/FirstMerit Bank branches
(combined) within a five-minute drive-time of the closing facility. Please see Map 13 in the
Appendix which illustrates the relationship between the consolidating FirstMerit Bank licensed
limited service facility and Huntington Bank locations in the immediate area.

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 13
3. Consolidations in majority-minority census tracts
Of the 62 short-distance branch consolidations, only five consolidate a branch located in
a majority-minority census tract. These consolidations are detailed below:
Location of Consolidating Branch

Location of Receiving Branch

Distance Between
the Branches

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


430 Northfield Rd., Bedford, Ohio
44146
(Cuyahoga County)
census tract is 50.4% minority

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


5321 Warrensville Rd., Maple
Heights, Ohio 44137
(Cuyahoga County)
census tract is 83.9% minority

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


25 West Prospect Avenue, Cleveland,
Ohio 44115
(Cuyahoga County)
census tract is 51.3% minority

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


200 Public Square, Cleveland, Ohio
44114 (Cuyahoga Country)
census tract is 51.3% minority

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


3505 Lee Rd., Shaker Heights, Ohio
44120
(Cuyahoga County)
census tract is 82.1% minority

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


17121 Chagrin Blvd., Shaker
Heights, Ohio 44120
(Cuyahoga County)
census tract is 33.1% minority

0.27 mile

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


411 Adams St., Toledo, Ohio 43604
(Lucas County)
census tract is 57.7% minority

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


519 Madison Ave., Toledo, Ohio
43604
(Lucas County)
census tract is 57.7% minority

0.16 mile

Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:


101 East Washington St.,
New Castle, Pennsylvania 16101
(Lawrence County)
census tract is 50.1% minority

Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:


11 S. Mill St.,
New Castle, Pennsylvania 16101
(Lawrence County)
census tract is 50.1% minority

0.09 mile

0.72 mile

0.14 mile

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 14
Explanations:
Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at 430 Northfield Rd., Bedford, Ohio This branch
is located in an LMI census tract. Please see above for the detailed reasons it was consolidated
into a nearby branch.
Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at 25 West Prospect Avenue, Cleveland, Ohio The
consolidating branch is located in downtown Cleveland where customers primarily walk from
neighboring businesses/buildings. Huntington Bank will continue to serve this community
through the Huntington Bank branch located at 200 Public Square (0.14 mile away from the
consolidating branch). The receiving Huntington Bank branch can be accessed on foot by
walking north on Ontario Street and then taking a right turn onto S. Roadway (Euclid Ave.). The
receiver branch is part of the "Huntington" building, which is the regional headquarters for
Huntington in Cleveland. The receiving branch offers both interior and exterior access as well as
a street-facing ATM. Huntington Bank plans on retaining one or more ATMs in a smaller space
at the consolidating FirstMerit Bank branch location (subject to landlord negotiations). In
addition, Huntington Bank has an existing walk-up ATM at Tower City, which will help to
service transactions. We believe that the customer impact of consolidating this location is
minimized because of the multiple ATM touchpoints that will be available at the Tower City
Center as well as Huntington Bank's prominent location on the city square. Huntington Bank
also has a branch at 905 Euclid Avenue (0.30 mile from Public Square) to serve customers in
downtown Cleveland. Please see Map 14 in the Appendix which shows the relationship between
the consolidating FirstMerit Bank branch and the Huntington Bank locations in the immediate
area. The receiving branch has ample capacity to handle the additional traffic from the
consolidating branch
Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at 3505 Lee Rd., Shaker Heights, Ohio This branch
is located in an LMI census tract. Please see above for the detailed reasons it was consolidated
into a nearby branch.
Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at 411 Adams St., Toledo, Ohio This branch is
located in an LMI census tract. Please see above for the detailed reasons it was consolidated into
a nearby branch.
Legacy Huntington Bank branch at 101 East Washington St., New Castle,
Pennsylvania This branch is located in an LMI census tract. Please see above for the detailed
reasons it was consolidated into a nearby branch.

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 15
4. Closings in majority-minority census tracts
Of the 45 closings, only one closes a branch located in a majority-minority census tract
and the receiving branch is only 0.21 mile from the closing branch.
This closure is detailed below:
Location of Closing Branch
Legacy Huntington Bank branch at:
130 N. Jefferson Ave., Saginaw,
Michigan 48607
(Saginaw County)
census tract is 91.9% minority

Location of Receiving Branch


Legacy FirstMerit Bank branch at:
101 N. Washington Avenue,
Saginaw, Michigan 48607
(Saginaw County)
census tract is 91.9% minority

Distance Between
the Branches

0.21 mile

Explanation:
Legacy Huntington Bank branch at 130 N. Jefferson Ave., Saginaw, Michigan This
branch is located in an LMI census tract. Please see above for the detailed reasons it was
consolidated into a nearby branch.
E. Public benefits far outweigh the costs.
Any limited inconvenience caused by the consolidations and closings in connection with
the Proposed Transaction should be weighed against the significant benefits that the Proposed
Transaction will bring to the customers of FirstMerit Bank and Huntington Bank and to the
communities they serve. For example, both the legacy customers of FirstMerit Bank and
Huntington Banks customers will benefit from the combined banks more extensive network of
branches and ATMs. The legacy customers of FirstMerit Bank will also benefit from the
extended branch hours of Huntington Bank branches on Saturdays, and such customers in Ohio
and Michigan will enjoy the added convenience of Huntington Bank branches co-located in local
major grocery stores, which are open seven days a week (including most holidays) and for longer
hours than traditional branches.
The customers of FirstMerit and FirstMerit Bank also will benefit from Huntington
Banks award-winning customer service and innovative products in its Fair Play banking
strategy, including its checking accounts with no minimum-balance requirement, no monthly
service fee and no-fee debit card use, as well as its 24-Hour Grace feature on that product and
all other consumer checking accounts. This feature allows customers with an overdraft balance
to make a deposit the next business day to clear the overdraft and avoid a fee. Huntington Bank
also is one of the only banks in the country to credit same-day deposits made up to midnight,

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 16
including deposits made on mobile devices and at ATMs through the banks All-Day DepositSM
solution. In addition, Huntington Bank offers no-fee automated transfers (to support
maintenance of positive checking account balances) and no monthly maintenance fees on any
savings account linked to the Asterisk-Free Checking account. Further, checking account
customers can also sign up for email or text messages if their accounts are overdrawn.
Huntington and Huntington Bank will provide the former customers of FirstMerit Bank
with a broader set of product and service offerings, including, among others: additional deposit
products and loan programs designed to benefit underserved populations and communities, as
well as small businesses; various commercial, trust/fiduciary, wealth and investment
management, institutional and public sector banking products and services; and personal and
commercial lines of insurance products and services that are not available at FirstMerit Bank.
Huntington Banks highly-rated customer service and broad suite of products and services have
helped to grow its customer base in the past four years by more than 38% for consumer depositor
relationships and 22% for commercial relationships. For example, Huntington Bank offers
additional low-cost checking and savings accounts with minimum balance criteria. In addition,
Huntington Bank offers an extensive range of business checking and savings accounts, including
its low-cost Community Checking Account (with no monthly fees for businesses that have up to
100 transactions) and Business Premier Savings Account, and offers payables/receivables
management (lockbox, vault, deposit and merchant services), Treasury and foreign exchange
services for small and larger businesses alike.
As is detailed in the Application and Section II below, Huntington Bank also offers
innovative lending programs, including those that assist underserved groups of customers. For
example, Huntington Banks proprietary Community Access Mortgage loan program assists LMI
borrowers or borrowers in LMI communities to purchase or refinance residences by offering
flexible underwriting criteria and low-cost features.
In addition, Huntington Bank offers its Consumer First Mortgage program, which is
designed to provide a convenient, low-cost refinancing of a residence and/or cash-out option
with no private mortgage insurance (PMI) requirements. Huntington Bank has also
implemented an unsecured home improvement loan program to help provide credit to
homeowners in LMI communities who are unable to qualify for traditional home equity loans
because of decreased home values and/or compromised credit. In addition, Huntington Banks
other home equity loans and lines of credit generally are more advantageous to customers than
those at FirstMerit Bank. Huntington Banks home equity loan product allows customers to
choose an escrow option, which is not available at FirstMerit Bank. In addition, Huntington
Banks home equity loan and line of credit product products allow for a maximum loan-to-value
(LTV) limit of 100% LTV, which is higher than that at FirstMerit Bank. As detailed in the
Application and in Section II below, Huntington Bank also actively participates in a variety of
national, state and locally based mortgage lending programs designed to assist LMI individuals
and LMI or minority communities.

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 17
As a more active lender for Small Business Administration loan programs than FirstMerit
Bank, Huntington Bank offers additional loan opportunities for legacy FirstMerit Bank small
business customers. Huntington Bank is also an active participant in a number of statesponsored programs designed to assist small businesses.
Commercial customers also will benefit from Huntington Banks larger lending limit for
individual borrowers, attracting a wider scope of commercial loan customers. Huntington Bank
offers additional products and services for commercial customers that are not available at
FirstMerit Bank. FirstMerit Banks public sector customers also will benefit from Huntington
Banks enhanced capabilities.
In addition, Huntington Bank offers specialized industry expertise in offering tailored
products and services to the following industries operating in the Midwest: food and
agribusiness financing, healthcare, franchises and energy. Through its Private Client Group
(PCG), Huntington Bank and Huntington Investment Company offer private banking,
fiduciary and wealth and investment management services that are not available at FirstMerit.
Clients of Huntington Banks PCG are assigned a dedicated Private Banker who functions as the
private banking customers overall Relationship Manager and provides a wider array of deposit,
loan and fiduciary products and services than are currently available at FirstMerit Bank. Due to
the larger size and scale of Huntington Banks fiduciary business, the bank offers a broader array
of trust products than FirstMerit Bank currently offers.
Huntington Banks corporate trust services and retirement plan services offer more scale
and expanded product offerings with nationally known industry partners than those available
through FirstMerit Bank. Huntington Banks fiduciary business also offers expanded product
and service offerings. Huntington Bank will be able to incorporate FirstMerit Bank fiduciary
service customers into its centralized processing of irrevocable life insurance trusts and real
estate trust services.
In addition, Huntington provides securities brokerage and investment advisory services
for individuals and commercial customers, activities that FirstMerit currently offers only through
outsourced third-party arrangements. Huntingtons broker-dealer services will offer legacy
FirstMerit Bank customers with improved new account set-up and document imaging workflow
capabilities, as well as financial planning and other tools and vendor relationships, which will
improve the customer experience. Further, through its commercial and personal lines insurance
agency, Huntington Insurance, Inc., Huntington offers a broader array of insurance products and
insurance-related consultative services which meet more needs of customers than what is
available at FirstMerit Bank.
Huntington Bank will continue its high level of community development lending,
investment and services, throughout the combined organizations footprint, taking into account
the Proposed Transaction. In addition, Huntington has agreed in the merger agreement between
Huntington and FirstMerit to establish, before the Proposed Transaction closes, a new charitable

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 18
foundation to support community development in Akron, Ohio, which will be overseen by an
initial three-member board of trustees. This board will be composed of one member of
Huntingtons board of directors and two members domiciled in the greater Akron area selected
from the four members of FirstMerits board of directors who will join Huntingtons board after
the Closing. This new charitable foundation will be funded with at least $20 million over a 10year period. In addition, Huntington has agreed to contribute $5 million over the same 10-year
period to The Huntington Foundation for the express purpose to provide additional community
development support in the greater Canton, Ohio and Flint, Michigan communities.
To minimize any economic impact to Akron, Huntington has also agreed in the merger
agreement to: (1) establish an operations/call center within Akron (or in a city with a Joint
Economic Development Agreement with Akron) and use reasonable best efforts to ensure that
such operations/call center is fully operational by no later than the date of the second anniversary
of the Proposed Transactions Closing date, and (2) use reasonable best efforts to maintain
employment levels in Akron that are consistent with FirstMerits employment levels as of the
Proposed Transactions date of Closing, by no later than the second anniversary of such date.
For all of these reasons, the expected benefits of the Proposed Transaction to the
customers and communities served by FirstMerit and Huntington outweigh any minimal
inconvenience that might result from the planned branch consolidations and closures.
II. Huntington Banks HMDA Lending Record
The March 19 E-mail criticizes Huntington Banks lending record, based on its reported
2014 HMDA data, alleging there were racial disparities in the banks mortgage lending activity
in its Akron and Cleveland, Ohio assessment areas. In particular, the March 19 E-mail alleges
that Huntington Bank made a disproportionately low number of home purchase, refinance and
home improvement loans to African American and Latino borrowers, and disproportionately
denied applications of African American and Latino borrowers for refinance and home
improvement loans, as compared to non-minority borrowers and applicants.
Any implication in the March 19 E-mail that Huntington Bank has engaged in prohibited
discrimination in its home mortgage lending is unfounded. As a preliminary matter, the Board
has long recognized that the full scope of information critical to an institutions credit decisions
is not available from HMDA data and, therefore, HMDA data disparities must be evaluated in
the context of other information regarding an institutions lending record. 5 For example, when
conducting fair lending examinations of an institution, examiners review other data relevant to
credit decisions, such as credit history, debt-to-income (DTI) ratios and LTV ratios. The

E.g., CIT Group, Inc., FRB Order No. 2015-20 (July 19, 2015); First Union Corporation, 83 Federal Reserve
Bulletin 1012 (1997).

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 19
Board also considers the institutions fair lending compliance program and record and its riskmanagement framework.
Huntington Bank is firmly committed to making its credit products and services available
to prospective and existing customers on a fair and equitable basis, in strict compliance with both
the letter and spirit of the fair lending laws and regulations. A summary of Huntington Banks
Fair Lending Program (the Program), which includes its Fair and Responsible Banking Policy
(the Policy), is provided in Exhibit 14 of the Application. The Program applies to all business
units and operational areas of Huntington Bank that are responsible for product development,
sales, marketing, credit risk, pricing, origination and servicing practices. As noted in the
Application, the Programs components cover: board and management oversight, policies and
procedures, risk assessment, monitoring and testing, internal controls, training and customer
complaint response. The monitoring, testing and internal controls to help ensure compliance
with fair lending laws and regulations include, among others: (1) fair lending risk assessments
that are conducted annually or more frequently, as needed, which include quantitative and
qualitative analyses and an assessment of the quality of the controls and resulting residual risks;
(2) a second review program; (3) required review and approval by Huntington Banks Fair
Lending Compliance Officer (FLCO) of proposed changes to credit underwriting policies and
procedures, credit risk or scoring models, pricing policies and tools, or other credit-related
models; (4) due diligence and oversight of any third-party lending relationships; (5) testing and
monitoring of HMDA data by the independent, centralized Compliance Team to ensure data
accuracy, completeness and integrity; (6) statistical tests (including regression analysis) by the
Compliance Team to detect any meaningful disparities; (7) matched-pair analyses, not less than
annually, on all consumer lending products, including home mortgage loans, pursuant to which
applicants from a protected class compared to similarly situated applicants who are not in a
protected classes to detect possible disparate treatment with respect to credit decisions and
pricing; (8) audits of the effectiveness of the Policy and Program by Internal Audit and
monitoring of any remediation actions; and (9) periodic reporting of fair lending compliance risk
assessments, issues and trends to senior management and the Community Development
Committee and Risk Committee of Huntington Banks board of directors. Huntington Bank also
has a robust customer complaint system that includes root cause and trend analysis, escalation of
any fair lending-based complaints and tracking and monitoring of complaint resolutions.
In addition, Huntington conducts extensive fair lending compliance training for its
employees. Employees in multiple business lines reporting up to the Chief Risk Officer, Chief
Compliance Officer, Chief Credit Officer, Chief Technology and Operations Officer must
complete training annually, including employees in: Regional Banking, Private Client Group,
Retail and Business Banking, Commercial Banking, Commercial Real Estate, Auto Finance and
Human Resources. Employees are assigned one or more of the fair lending compliance training
modules on an annual basis. In addition, annual compliance training for Huntington Banks
board of directors covers fair lending compliance, and the boards Community Development
Committee receives annual fair lending compliance training. Training is monitored and tracked
and subject to accountability measures. Successful completion of training is reported to

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 20
Corporate Compliance, Segment Risk and the Community Development Committee of
Huntington Banks board of directors, and segment-level completion of the training is monitored
and reported to senior and executive management in risk assessments. A portion of performance
evaluations is based on successful completion of assigned training.
Information on the bases for the denials of home loan applications supports the view that
Huntington Bank does not engage in prohibited discrimination in its mortgage lending. A review
of Huntington Banks denials of home loan applications from African Americans and
Hispanics/Latinos, as reported under HMDA in 2014, demonstrates that such actions were based
on objective reasons unrelated to the race or ethnicity of the applicant or neighborhood where the
subject property was located. The substantial majority of the denials were due to the collateral,
credit history, incomplete credit applications and DTI ratios, as can be seen by the percentages
below:
(1) Akron
(a) African American applicantscollateral (17%), incomplete credit application
(13.8%), credit history (58.6%), DTI ratio (6.9%) and insufficient cash
availability (3.4%).
(b) Hispanic/Latino applicants 6collateral (37.5%), incomplete credit application
(37.5%) and credit history (25.0%).
(2) Cleveland
(a) African American applicantscollateral (17.7%), incomplete credit application
(12.0%), credit history (61.1%), DTI ratio (7.3%), employment history (0.3%),
insufficient cash availability (0.6%), and unverifiable information (0.3%). 7
(b) Hispanic/Latino applicantscollateral (14.9%), incomplete credit application
(20.8%), credit history (47.5 %), DTI ratio (12.9%), employment history (1.0%)
and unverifiable information (1.0%). 8
For all these reasons and based on all the facts and circumstances, there is no basis to
conclude that Huntington Bank has engaged in discriminatory home mortgage lending practices.

Hispanics/Latinos represent only 1.5% of the population in the Akron Metropolitan Statistical Area.

In addition, 0.63% had a denial reason of other. The HMDA reporting rules indicate that the denial reason
should be reported as other if the denial is for a reason other than: DTI ratio; employment history; credit history;
collateral; insufficient cash availability; unverifiable information; incomplete credit application; or mortgage
insurance denied.

In addition, 2.0% had a denial reason of other.

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 21
Moreover, the March 19 E-mail ignores Huntington Banks many affordable mortgage
loan programs and community development activities to increase affordable housing
opportunities for LMI individuals and communities, which include many minority residents in
the banks assessment areas. As noted in the Application and Section I above, Huntington Bank
offers a proprietary affordable home mortgage loan program, the Community Access Mortgage
program, to assist LMI borrowers or borrowers in LMI communities to purchase, refinance or
improve residences. The Community Access Mortgage program allows higher LTV ratios and
does not include either a PMI requirement or an interest rate adjustment for lower credit scores.
Among the advantageous home equity loan programs offered by Huntington Bank, which
are discussed in the Application and Section I above, is its proprietary Consumer First Mortgage
program, which is designed to provide homeowners a convenient, low-cost refinancing of a
residence and/or a cash-out option with no PMI requirement. In addition, after learning from
community organizations in various markets that consumers in LMI census tracts needed small,
affordable loans for home improvement purposes, Huntington Bank implemented an unsecured
home improvement loan program for homeowners in LMI communities, which offers short-term
loans (12-16 month terms) in amounts of $999 to $3,000 at an affordable fixed rate of 2.99%.
Huntington Bank also actively participates in a variety of national, state and locally based
mortgage lending programs designed to assist LMI individuals and LMI or minority
communities, including programs of the Veterans Administration, the Federal Housing
Administration, the Federal Home Loan Bank of Cincinnati (the Cincinnati FHLB), the U.S.
Department of Agriculture and Fannie Mae. Examples of state and county-sponsored affordable
mortgage programs in Ohio and Michigan in which Huntington Bank participates are listed in the
Application. One such example is the Cuyahoga County Housing Enhancement Loan Program
(the H.E.L.P. Program), which is designed to assist in the revitalization of Cleveland and its
neighboring communities by offering affordable home improvement loans for alterations,
repairs, maintenance, improvement, code violation compliance and other residential property
upgrades. The H.E.L.P. Program is a linked-deposit program that provides reduced rates for
borrowers through the purchase of reduced-yield certificates of deposit from the lender.
In addition, Huntington Bank has taken actions to increase the number of home mortgage
applications from, and loans to, LMI, African American and Hispanic/Latino borrowers. For
example, in Akron, Huntington Bank has partnered with the East Akron Neighborhood
Development Corporation (EANDC), an organization that works to improve communities by
providing quality and affordable housing, comprehensive homeownership services and economic
development opportunities. In northeast Ohio, Huntington Bank also has partnered with
Neighborhood Housing Services of Greater Cleveland (NHS Cleveland), which works to
strengthen urban neighborhoods and communities by offering various programs supporting
affordable homeownership, including in collaboration with lenders and other third parties.
Huntington Bank offers all of its mortgage products through its relationship with EANDC and
NHS Cleveland, as well as its Hometown Mortgage, through these strategic partnerships. The
Hometown Mortgage product allows flexible sources for down payment and/or closing costs.

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 22
Borrowers must have $500 of their own funds invested in the home purchase transaction, but
sellers may pay closing costs, escrow items and prepaid items up to 6% of the sales price or
appraised value of the property, whichever is less. Qualified borrowers are not limited to first
time homebuyers, but they must be owner occupants and they cannot own other residential real
estate at the time the Hometown Mortgage closes.
Moreover, to increase lending and promote homeownership in LMI communities,
Huntington is waiving its closing costs for borrowers purchasing or refinancing a home in an
LMI census tract. This is a significant action to reduce the cost of homeownership in LMI
communities.
During the last four years, Huntington Bank has increased the number and percentage of
its overall total HMDA loans originated to African American and Hispanic/Latino borrowers in
its footprint. For example, in 2012, Huntington Bank originated 633 HMDA loans to African
American borrowers and 285 HMDA loans to Hispanic/Latino borrowers. In 2015, HMDA loan
originations had increased to 990 loans to African American borrowers and to 372 loans to
Hispanic/Latino borrowers. During this same time period, the percentages of denials of HMDA
loan applications from African American borrowers and Hispanic/Latino borrowers also steadily
decreased each year. Those same improvements in lending to African American and
Hispanic/Latino borrowers are generally found in Huntington Banks HMDA lending record for
Ohio, including its Cleveland and Akron assessment areas, during the same time period.
In addition, Huntington Bank continually seeks opportunities to participate in new,
innovative affordable mortgage programs. For example, as noted in the Application, Huntington
Bank is the largest participant in the newly-announced Detroit Home Mortgage Fund, through
which home purchasers in Detroit will receive low-cost mortgage loans to cover the gaps
between the amounts of mortgage loans needed, including for required repairs and
rehabilitations, and the low appraised values of homes in Detroit. Disinvestment in the Detroit
housing market has resulted in a large number of vacant homes, many of which require
rehabilitation before they can be occupied. Due to low appraised values of homes caused by a
lack of comparable sales prices in the Detroit market and exacerbated by large numbers of
abandoned homes in many neighborhoods, homebuyers who wish to purchase and rehabilitate a
home have trouble obtaining financing. To address this problem, Huntington Bank and four
other program lenders, including FirstMerit Bank, have agreed to originate first and second
mortgage loans, which would cover the cost to purchase and renovate the subject property, to
qualified borrowers in Detroit and then sell the second mortgage loans to the Detroit Home
Mortgage Fund. The Community Reinvestment Fund Inc., a non-profit organization, will act as
servicer and program administrator to the Detroit Home Mortgage Fund. Furthermore,
Huntington, through its subsidiary community development corporation, together with two other
participating banks, has committed to provide initial funding to the Detroit Home Mortgage Fund
of up to approximately $18.2 million in order to fund the purchase by the Detroit Home
Mortgage Fund of the second mortgage loans originated by the program lenders. Huntington has
committed to provide the most funding to the Detroit Home Mortgage Fund, initially

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 23
approximately $8.2 million. Huntington further agreed to provide funding up to a total of $18.5
million (or up to 45% of the funding), if additional participating investors are admitted to the
fund and its size increases. The Detroit Home Mortgage Fund will receive grants from the
Michigan State Housing Development Authority and a guarantee by the Kresge Foundation, a
non-profit organization. The Ford Foundation provided initial operating grants to the
Community Reinvestment Fund Inc. to assist with the initial expenses related to the development
and launch of the program. Under the new program, homebuyers with good credit and stable
income may obtain a first mortgage for the appraised value of a home, minus a low down
payment of only 3.5%, and a second mortgage of up to $75,000 will cover the gap between the
homes appraised value and the sales price and/or the cost of renovations. This new innovative
program should increase home ownership opportunities and property values for underserved
residents and communities in Detroit, including minority individuals and communities.
Also noteworthy is the leadership role that Huntington Bank has played in helping
community organizations obtain Affordable Housing Program grants from the Cincinnati FHLB.
For example, in the years 2012 through 2015, Huntington Bank has worked to obtain $18.6
million of Affordable Housing grants, which exceeds that of any other member of the Cincinnati
FHLB. These grants, representing nearly 19% of the total number of Affordable Housing
Program grants during such time period, were to construct, rehabilitate or repair 1,814 affordable
housing units. Such grants include those that involved Huntington Bank partnering with small
institutions, which normally could not have participated in the Cincinnati FHLBs Affordable
Housing Program.
In addition, Huntington Bank has supported affordable housing development through its
community development lending, investment and service activities. In Huntington Banks most
recent CRA performance evaluation, dated January 1, 2012 (the 2012 Evaluation), the OCC
reported that the banks community development lending in Ohio was excellent, including in its
Cleveland assessment area which was subject to a full-scope review. The OCC also commended
Huntington Banks qualified investment activity, particularly the number of its investments in
individual low income housing tax credit (LIHTC) projects and single-investor funds where
the bank was involved in the financing plans for the affordable housing projects. The
Application identifies a number of examples of Huntington Banks community development
loans and qualified investments during and since the evaluation period of the 2012 Evaluation,
including those that support affordable housing projects.
Since the 2012 Evaluation, Huntington Bank has made community development loans
totaling $238.8 million in Cleveland and $70.7 million in Akron, and qualified investments
totaling $39.6 million in Cleveland and $11.1 million in Akron. Examples of such loans and
investments in Cleveland and Akron since the 2012 Evaluation that were focused on affordable
housing development or rehabilitation include:

A $4.0 million construction loan for a LIHTC project to create 30 affordable


residential units in Cleveland.

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 24

A $5.1 million LIHTC investment to create 126 affordable family housing units in
Cleveland.
A $4.8 million loan to a LIHTC project to construct affordable single family homes in
Akron.
A $4.3 million LIHTC investment to create 60 affordable units of housing for special
needs and homeless populations in Akron.

As recognized in the 2012 Evaluation and discussed in the Application, Huntington Bank
also has engaged in a high level of community development services throughout its assessment
areas. Huntington Banks management and employees have volunteered their financial, business
and technical expertise by serving on the boards of directors and committees and volunteering
their time to various non-profit community organizations, including those that focus on
providing affordable housing and other services. As part of these community development
service efforts, Huntington Bank management and employees have addressed financial literacy
needs through credit counseling, first-time home buyer seminars, foreclosure prevention
workshops and other financial education programs targeted to LMI individuals throughout its
assessment areas. Since the 2012 Evaluation, Huntington Banks employees have volunteered
42,179 community development service hours throughout its footprint, including 4,895 hours in
Cleveland and 1,325 hours in Akron.
Huntington Banks wide ranging activities demonstrate its commitment to providing
access to affordable housing to underserved residents and communities, including minority
individuals and communities, directly and in partnership with governmental organizations, nonprofit community organizations and other participants.
III. Comment Period Extension Request
The March 19 E-mail requested an extension of the comment period. On March 10,
2016, Huntington Bank and FirstMerit Bank published notices of the Application in (a) The
Columbus Dispatch, a newspaper of general circulation in Columbus, Ohio, the city in which
Huntingtons headquarters and Huntington Banks main office are located, and (b) the Akron
Beacon Journal, a newspaper of general circulation in Akron, Ohio, the city in which
FirstMerits headquarters and FirstMerit Banks main office are located. Huntington published
such notices in accordance with the requirements of the Boards regulations. 9 Those notices
invited comments on the Application, which was submitted to the Board on the same day, and
noted that the due date for such comments was April 9, 2016. In addition, the Board published
notice of the Application in the Federal Register on March 17, 2016, inviting the public to
comment on the Application through April 15, 2016. Therefore, the comment period on the

12 CFR 225.16(b).

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 25
Application is 36 days and remains open, providing interested members of the public an ample
amount of time to comment on the Application.
The Boards rules contemplate that the public comment period will not be extended
absent a clear demonstration of hardship or other meritorious reasons for seeking additional
time. 10 The March 19 E-mail, however, does not identify any facts or circumstances that would
warrant an extension of the public comment period for the Application.
Accordingly, the Board should deny the request to extend the public comment period on
the Application.
IV. Public Hearing Request
The March 19 E-mail also asserted that the Board should hold public hearings on the
Application. Section 3(b) of the Bank Holding Company Act does not require that the Board
hold a public hearing on any application unless the appropriate supervisory authority of the bank
to be acquired makes a timely written recommendation of denial of the application. 11 To
Huntingtons knowledge, the Board has not received any such recommendation from the OCC.
Under its rules, the Board may, in its discretion, hold a public hearing or meeting if
appropriate to allow interested persons an opportunity to provide relevant testimony when
written comments would not adequately represent their views. 12 However, the March 19 E-mail
does not identify disputed issues of fact material to the Boards decision on the Application or
that would be clarified by a public hearing or meeting. The March 19 E-mail also does not
demonstrate why written comments cannot adequately present the commenters views, or those
of other interested members of the public, or why a hearing or meeting otherwise would be
necessary or appropriate.
Accordingly, the Board should deny any such request for a public hearing on the
Application.
*******

10

12 CFR 262.25(b)(2).

11

12 U.S.C. 1842(b); 12 CFR 225.16(e).

12

12 CFR 225.16(e); 12 CFR 262.3(i)(2); see, e.g., CIT Group, Inc., FRB Order No. 2015-20 (July 19, 2015).

Mr. Allen M. Brown


March 31, 2016
Page 26
Once again, we appreciate this opportunity to respond. If you have any questions about
this submission or need additional information, please do not hesitate to contact me (212/4031127) or my colleague, Jeffrey A. Watiker (212/403-1330).
Sincerely,

Patricia A. Robinson
Attachments
cc (via e-mail):
Matthew Lee, Inner City Press/Fair Finance Watch
Travis Wilbert, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
Carolina M. Ledesma, Office of the Comptroller of the Currency
Richard A. Cheap, Huntington Bancshares Incorporated and
The Huntington National Bank
Helga S. Houston, Huntington Bancshares Incorporated and
The Huntington National Bank
Staci Glenn Short, Huntington Bancshares Incorporated and
The Huntington National Bank
Nicholas G. Demmo, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
Richard K. Kim, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
Mark F. Veblen, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz
Jeffrey A. Watiker, Wachtell, Lipton, Rosen & Katz

Appendix

#1
ConsolidatingBranch:TheFirstMeritBankbranchlocatedat21NBeaconBlvd,GrandHaven,Michigan49417
ReceivingBranch:TheHuntingtonBankbranchlocatedat1300SouthBeaconBlvd,GrandHaven,Michigan49417

#2
ConsolidatingBranch:TheFirstMeritbankbranchlocatedat430NorthfieldRd,Bedford,Ohio44146
ReceivingBranch:TheHuntingtonbankbranchlocatedat5321WarrensvilleRd,MapleHeights,Ohio44137

#3
ConsolidatingBranch:TheFirstMeritbankbranchlocatedat11427EuclidAvenue,Cleveland,Ohio44114
ReceivingBranch:TheHuntingtonbankbranchlocatedat11457MayfieldRoad,Cleveland,Ohio44106

Afterthisphotowastaken,anew
buildingcontainingthe
consolidatingbranchwasbuilt

#4
ConsolidatingBranch:TheFirstMeritbankbranchlocatedat6939EBroadSt,Columbus,Ohio43213
ReceivingBranch:TheHuntingtonbankbranchlocatedat6867EastBroadStreet,Columbus,Ohio43213

#5
ConsolidatingBranch:TheHuntingtonbankbranchlocatedat1500EastMainSt,Kent,Ohio
44240ReceivingBranch:TheFirstMeritbankbranchlocatedat1729StateRt59,Kent,Ohio44240

#6
ConsolidatingBranch:TheHuntingtonbankbranchlocatedat6550NRidgeRd,Madison,Ohio44057
ReceivingBranch:TheFirstMeritbankbranchlocatedat6565NRidgeRd,Madison,Ohio44057

#7
ConsolidatingBranch:TheHuntingtonbankbranchlocatedat58SParkPlace,Painesville,Ohio
44077ReceivingBranch:TheFirstMeritbankbranchlocatedat56LibertySt,Painesville,Ohio44077

#8
ConsolidatingBranch:TheFirstMeritbankbranchlocatedat3505LeeRd,ShakerHeights,Ohio44120
ReceivingBranch:TheHuntingtonbankbranchlocatedat17121ChagrinBlvd,ShakerHeights,Ohio44120

#9
ConsolidatingBranch:TheFirstMeritbankbranchlocatedat411AdamsSt,Toledo,Ohio43604
ReceivingBranch:TheHuntingtonbankbranchlocatedat519MadisonAve,Toledo,Ohio43604

#10
ConsolidatingBranch:TheHuntingtonBankbranchlocatedat101EWashingtonSt,NewCastle,Pennsylvania
16101ReceivingBranch:TheFirstMeritBankbranchlocatedat11SMillSt,NewCastle,Pennsylvania16101

#11-A
ClosingBranch:TheHuntingtonBankbranchlocatedat130NJeffersonAve.,Saginaw,Michigan48607
ReceivingBranch:TheFirstMeritBankbranchlocatedat101NWashingtonAvenue,Saginaw,Michigan48607

#11-B
ClosingBranch:TheHuntingtonBankbranchlocatedat130NJeffersonAve.,Saginaw,Michigan48607
ReceivingBranch:TheFirstMeritBankbranchlocatedat101NWashingtonAvenue,Saginaw,Michigan48607

#12
ClosingBranch:TheFirstMeritBankbranchlocatedat39E.MarketSt,Akron,Ohio44308
ReceivingBranch:TheHuntingtonBankbranchlocatedat106SMainSt,Akron,Ohio44308

#13
ClosingBranch:TheFirstMeritbankbranchlocatedat111WRichSt,Columbus,Ohio43215
ReceivingBranch:TheHuntingtonbankbranchlocatedat17SHighStreet,Columbus,Ohio43215

#14
ConsolidatingBranch:TheFirstMeritbankbranchlocatedat25WestProspectAvenue,Cleveland,Ohio44115
ReceivingBranch:TheHuntingtonbankbranchlocatedat200PublicSquare,Cleveland,Ohio44114

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