Capital One Announces $265 Billion Community Plan as Part of Discover Deal

Capital One Announces $265 Billion Community Benefits Plan

Capital One said Tuesday (July 16) that a combination of the bank with Discover Financial Services would provide more benefits to underserved communities than the organizations would offer separately.

The bank said this in a press release announcing a $265 billion community benefits plan that it developed in partnership with four community groups.

“We have a long history of developing innovative ways to serve these core constituencies, and we are committed to ensuring, through this community benefits plan, that our acquisition of Discover builds on our history of positive impact,” Richard Fairbank, founder, CEO and chairman of Capital One, said in the release.

The announcement of this plan comes as the bank works to gain regulatory approval for its planned $35 billion takeover of Discover, Reuters reported Wednesday.

That planned takeover has critics, as some community groups fear it will reduce services and increase costs for Americans, according to the report.

Capital One’s community benefits plan could help blunt this criticism and make the deal look more favorable to regulators who are under political pressure to be tough on mergers, per the report.

In its press release, Capital One said the plan is twice as large as any previous such commitment made in connection with a bank acquisition.

The plan includes elements designed to expand economic opportunity for underserved consumers, increase access to products and services for unbanked or underbanked consumers, enable greater access to safe and affordable housing, expand access to credit for small business owners, and support the development of schools, civic centers and healthcare facilities, according to the release.

“This plan delivers high-impact, scalable solutions for low- and moderate-income communities, and its commitments and ambition reflect the robust, candid dialogue that drove its development,” Andres Navarrete, executive vice president and head of external affairs at Capital One, said in the release.

Capital One and Discover announced the planned acquisition Feb. 19, saying it will create a global payments platform with 70 million merchant acceptance points in more than 200 countries and territories.

Members of both political parties criticized the deal soon after it was announced, with Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Calif.) and Sen. Josh Hawley (R-Mo.) calling for it to be blocked.