Activists Attack Glenfed on Lending

Activists attacked Glendale Federal Bank’s record of lending to minorities, saying it made just 11 home loans to blacks earning less than $35,000 at its 148 branches in 1995. At a meeting called by the federal Office of Thrift Supervision, they said Glenfed, like other financial institutions, has kept its branches away from low-income and minority areas, leaving residents to use check-cashing services instead. Richard Fink, a senior executive vice president for the savings and loan, disputed the arguments of 40 civil rights, minority business and community leaders who jammed a tiny meeting room at a Los Angeles International Airport-area hotel. Fink said the the loan numbers for 1995 were an anomaly.