In Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke’s world, all he had to do was lower interest rates enough and housing prices would magically re-inflate. Wrong! Mortgage rates are at all time lows, home prices are at 2002 levels and owning a home is just as cheap as renting, yet the housing market remains mired in a […]
Interest Rates At All Time Lows And Home Prices At Ten Year Lows – Why Are Home Sales The Worst Ever?
February 1, 2012 By 1 Comment
Sunshine State Community Bank, Port Orange, Florida, Collapses
February 11, 2011 By Leave a Comment
Sunshine State Community Bank, Port Orange, Florida, was closed today by the Florida Office of Financial Regulation, which appointed the FDIC as receiver. Sunshine was a five branch bank which opened in mid 2000. During the real estate boom of the early 2000’s, the Bank rapidly expanded its assets, growing from $20 million in 2000 […]
Independent Bank’s Stock Price Soars – Is A Takeover Looming?
January 17, 2011 By 1 Comment
After hitting a low of $1 per share in mid December, the stock price of Independent Bank (IBCP) has soared to almost $4 per share. On Friday, IBCP rose $.63 to $3.80, a 20% gain on the day. Volume of the normally thinly traded stock has also increased dramatically since mid December. Trading volume for […]
Banks With $1.2 Billion In Unpaid TARP Loans Buy 18 Failed Banks From FDIC
January 5, 2011 By 1 Comment
During 2010, 12 different banks with $1.2 billion in outstanding TARP loans to the US Treasury purchased 18 different failed banks from the FDIC. According to a recent report from the Congressional Oversight Committee, TARP funds totaling $205 billion were distributed to a total of 707 banks. The largest recipients of TARP money have repaid […]
Whitney National Bank Acquired By Hancock Holding As Banks Seek Profits Through Takeovers
December 23, 2010 By 1 Comment
December 22, 2010 – Besieged by slow loan growth, loan defaults and costly new regulations, the banking industry is turning to mergers and acquisitions to rebuild profits. In the latest wave of recent bank acquisitions, Hancock Holding Company and Whitney Holding Company announced that Whitney would merge into Hancock in a stock-for-stock transaction. Both banks […]