US regulators close three banks, total now 132

Sunday, 17 October 2010 21:43 - - {{hitsCtrl.values.hits}}

Reuters - Three more U.S. banks were closed by regulators on Friday, bringing to 132 the total number of banks to fail so far this year.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp said Premier Bank of Jefferson City, Missouri, Security Savings Bank, F.S.B. of Olathe, Kansas, and WestBridge Bank and Trust Co of Chesterfield, Missouri, were closed.

Premier Bank had about $1.18 billion in assets and $1.03 billion in deposits. The failure is projected to cost the FDIC deposit insurance fund $406.9 million.

Providence Bank of Columbia, Missouri, will assume all of the deposits of Premier Bank, except certain brokered deposits, and also agreed to purchase about $657.9 million of the failed bank’s assets, the FDIC said.

Security Savings Bank, F.S.B. had about $508.4 million in assets and $397 million in deposits. The failure is expected to cost the FDIC deposit insurance fund $82.2 million. Simmons First National Bank of Arkansas will assume Security Savings Bank’s deposits and assets.

WestBridge Bank and Trust Company had about $91.5 million in assets and $72.5 million in deposits. The failure will cost the FDIC’s fund $18.7 million.

Midland States Bank of Effingham, Illinois will assume the failed bank’s deposits and assets, the FDIC said.

FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair said recently that the agency still anticipates that the number of failures this year will exceed total of 140 in 2009, but that total assets of this year’s failures will probably be lower. While failures are still occurring at a rapid pace, it is now mostly smaller institutions that have been collapsing as they deal with problems in the commercial real estate market. Community banks tend to have higher concentrations of these loans than larger banks.

Washington Mutual, which had $307 billion in assets when it was seized in September 2008, remains the largest bank to fail during the financial crisis.