Largest Bank Failure of 2014 – The National Republic Bank of Chicago

Illinois has been a tough place for banks this year.  A third of all bank failures during 2014 have occurred in Illinois and the collapse of The National Republic Bank of Chicago also gives Illinois the distinction of having the nation’s largest bank failure. The National Republic Bank of Chicago, Chicago, Illinois, (TNRBC) was shuttered […]

Hedge Fund Makes Huge Bet On Flagstar Bancorp

Would you invest almost all of your money in Flagstar Bancorp? Managing investment risk through diversification is often cited as one of the most important rules for successful investment.  The future performance of a company is impossible to reliably predict since it is subject to countless unknown variables. Since the future prospects of a business […]

NBRS Financial, Rising Sun, MD, Becomes 15th Bank Failure of 2014

The Maryland Office of the Commissioner of Financial Regulation closed today NBRS Financial, Rising Sun, Maryland, and appointed the FDIC as receiver.  The FDIC in turn sold the failed bank to Howard Bank, Elliott City, Maryland, which will assume all deposits of NBRS Financial. NBRS Financial was originally founded in 1873 under the name The […]

How Much Risk Are Banks Taking With Credit Card Lending?

Savers aren’t the only ones being hurt by the Federal Reserve’s suppression of interest rates.  The Fed’s zero interest rate policy has been a factor in the decline of banks’ net interest margins to a multi-decades low. According to the latest FDIC Quarterly Banking Profile the net interest for all banks for the quarter ending […]

What Is the Average Rate on a Bank Credit Card?

Credit cards have become an absolute necessity for most people despite the high rates charged on revolving loan balances.  Whether traveling anywhere in the world or just buying a cup of coffee at Starbucks, a credit card allows the purchaser a safe, convenient, and fast method of paying for a purchase. The use of both […]

Bank Failures Fall to Seven Year Low

During the financial crisis the number of banking failures swelled to a peak failure year during 2010 when a total of 157 banking institutions failed. The number of bank failures has declined every year since then and the number of banks failures during 2014 has reached a seven year low. Is the current low number […]

Home Equity Loans – Why Banks and Borrowers Both Love Them

With interest rates at all time lows why wouldn’t banks love handing out home equity lines of credit (HELOC)?  Since HELOCs are all written as adjustable rate second mortgages any increase in interest rates translates into instantly higher profits for banks.  With a HELOC the borrower takes on interest rate risk as opposed to a […]

Whatever Happened to Money Market Fund Rates? The New World of Zero Return and High Risk

Here’s an interesting tidbit from Merrill Lynch on the various money market funds that investors can sweep excess cash into.  The yields are enough to bring retired investors trying to live off of yield to tears. It’s hard to believe looking back that a mere five years ago, prior to the financial meltdown, savers could […]

Five Years After the Banking Crisis, Hundreds of Problem Banks Still Struggle

While many banks have completely recovered from the banking and financial crises of over six years ago, the number of banks classified as “Problem Banks” by the FDIC has remained stubbornly high. A milestone of sorts was reached recently when, after five years, the number of banks on the FDIC’s Problem Bank List finally declined […]

GreenChoice Bank, fsb, Chicago, IL, Closed by Regulators

GreenChoice Bank, fsb, Chicago, Illinois, a small community bank, was closed today by the Office of the Comptroller.  The FDIC, appointed as receiver, sold the failed bank to Providence Bank, LLC, South Holland, Illinois, which will assume all deposits of GreenChoice Bank. GreenChoice Bank had been around for over 100 years, having been founded in […]