Six Bank Failures In Four States = $2.5 Billion In Losses For FDIC

Regulators closed six banks in four different states increasing the total banking failures for the year to 34.  Although the largest banks in the country are no longer at direct risk of failing, a significant number of small to midsized problem banks continue to be at risk.

The number of banks on the FDIC’s latest confidential Problem Bank List increased to 884 from the previous quarter’s total of 860.  The number of banks that continue to be at risk of failing represent over 12% of all FDIC insured institutions.  Smaller banks rely primarily upon earnings from lending and loan growth has been very slow.

Raising capital has also proved to be very difficult for smaller banks and declining values in property markets has resulted in additional nonperforming loans and losses for small banks.  The average total assets of a bank on the Problem Bank List is $440 million and most of the banks closed this year have been in this asset size range or lower.

For the first time this year, a bank with over $1 billion in total assets failed.  The 34 banks that failed this year had total assets of $14.8 billion and resulted in losses of $2.5 billion.

This week’s list of banking failures are as follows.  Please click on link for further details on each bank failure.

Bank Failure #29 – Bartow County Bank, GA

Bank Failure #30 – New Horizons Bank, GA

Bank Failure #31 – Nexity Bank, AL

Bank Failure #32 – Superior Bank, AL – $3 Billion Banking Failure

Bank Failure #33 – Rosemount National Bank, MN

Bank Failure #34 – Heritage Banking Group, MS