During the past five years we have witnessed the greatest financial turmoil since the Great Depression. Hundreds of giant bank failures rocked the nation, real estate values crashed, trillions of dollars of wealth vanished overnight and millions of Americans lost their jobs. Although a relative calm has been restored due to unprecedented actions by both […]
2012 Bank Failures Lowest Since 2008 As Regulators Close 51 Banks
December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Bank Stocks Were 2012’s Best Investment – Now What?
December 31, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Bank stocks had few friends during 2011 during which time financial stocks plunged by over 18%, even as the S&P 500 eked out a slim total return of 2.1%. As financial stocks dropped last year to levels at which they were selling well below book value in many cases, buyers came back in force. During […]
FHA Reverse Mortgage Losses Of $28 Billion – Profits For Banks, Disaster For Borrowers and Taxpayers
December 15, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Reverse mortgages have become the new minefield in government sponsored mortgage lending. According to an independent estimate done for HUD, losses could exceed $28 billion through 2019. To put that figure into perspective, total losses to the FDIC Deposit Insurance Fund for the 51 banking failures of 2012 total only $2.5 billion. The good news […]
Community Bank of the Ozarks, Sunrise Beach, MO, Closed By Regulators
December 14, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Community Bank of the Ozarks, Sunrise Beach, MO, was closed today by the Missouri Division of Finance, which named the FDIC as receiver. Community Bank of the Ozarks, which describes itself as a “strong, independent community bank” on its website, was buried under an avalanche of defaulted loans. At September 30, 2012, the Bank had […]
Bank Earnings Soar To Six Year High But Bank Stocks Still Off 50% From Pre Crisis Levels
December 4, 2012 By Leave a Comment
According to the latest FDIC Quarterly Banking Profile, the banking industry recorded its 13th consecutive quarterly year-over-year increase in profits. Total net income for all FDIC-insured institutions rose to $37.6 billion in the third quarter of 2012, a 6.6% increase from the third quarter of last year. Most of the increase in net earnings were […]
Mortgage Borrowers Pay Thousands In Excess Fees Due To Complex Bank Pricing
December 3, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Few people wonder if they got the best price on that newly purchased 65” HDTV. Transparency in retail pricing through technological advances has enabled consumers to quickly locate the retailer selling a product at the lowest cost. A few quick clicks on the web or the use of price comparisons apps such as Amazon’s “Price […]
Banks Are Powerless Against The Biggest Threat To The Financial System
November 28, 2012 By Leave a Comment
Just when it appears that the banking system is beginning to stabilize, a new ominous threat to financial stability has become a serious concern among the nation’s top bankers. In a speech at a Berlin conference, Dennis Lockhart, President of the Federal Reserve Bank of Atlanta, talked about the serious threat of cyber attacks against […]
The FDIC Will Eliminate Deposit Insurance On $1.4 Trillion Of Bank Deposits
November 6, 2012 By Leave a Comment
In the aftermath of the banking meltdown that began in 2008 many large depositors with balances in excess of the standard deposit insurance limit of $250,000 became very concerned about losing money in a bank failure. In an effort to instill confidence in the banking system, the Dodd-Frank Act instituted temporary unlimited deposit insurance on […]
FDIC Issues 67 Enforcement Actions In September Against Banks and Individuals
October 26, 2012 By 2 Comments
A total of 67 enforcement actions were taken by the FDIC against banks and individuals in September, down from 80 in the prior month. The September enforcement actions included the following: 8 consent orders 13 civil money penalties 20 section 19 orders 19 removal and prohibition orders 8 orders terminating consent orders and cease and […]
FDIC Issues 80 Enforcement Actions In August Against Banks and Individuals
September 28, 2012 By Leave a Comment
The FDIC announced today that a total of 80 enforcement actions were issued against banks and individuals in August. In the previous month, the FDIC issued 56 enforcement actions. Enforcement actions taken during August included the following: 19 civil money penalties 12 consent orders 19 orders terminating consent and cease and desist orders 18 section […]