Wells Fargo Seeks to Settle ‘Banking While Black’ Mortgage Case

Wells Fargo & Co. is pursuing private mediation to settle claims of widespread discrimination against Black homeowners by denying them lower interest rates through refinancing and forcing them to pay more for loans.

Lawyers for the bank and borrowers said they’ve agreed to work with a former federal judge to try to resolve a group of class-action lawsuits — which, if successful, would spare Wells Fargo from having to publicly litigate allegations that it engaged in a modernized version of “redlining.”

The attorneys committed to holding a mediation session within the next six months with Layn Phillips, a retired ...