2 more banks fail, lifting this year's tally to 23

Regulators close Colorado's New Frontier Bank and North Carolina's Cape Fear Bank

NEW YORK (AP) -- Federal regulators shut down two more banks Friday,
raising the number of bank failures so far this year to 23.

The first bank was Cape Fear Bank in Wilmington, N.C., the first
North Carolina bank to fail in nearly 16 years. The other bank was New
Frontier Bank of Greeley, Colo., the second Colorado bank this year to
collapse.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. took over both banks Friday after their respective state regulators closed them down.The
FDIC did not tap a buyer for New Frontier Bank, and instead created the
Deposit Insurance National Bank of Greeley. The FDIC named San
Francisco-based Bank of the West to manage the entity, which will stay
open for about 30 days to give New Frontier Bank's customers time to
open accounts at other insured institutions.
New Frontier Bankhas $2 billion in assets and $1.5 billion in deposits, $4 million of
which potentially exceeded the insurance limits. Regular deposit
accounts are insured up to $250,000.The FDIC was able, however,
to sell Cape Fear Bank to First Federal Savings and Loan Association of
Charleston in Charleston, S.C. On Monday, Cape Fear Bank's eight
branches will reopen as First Federal branches.First Federal is
assuming all of Cape Fear Bank's $403 million in deposits and buying
about $468 million of its $492 million in assets. The FDIC will retain
the rest of the assets to sell later.The most recent Colorado
bank to fail was Colorado National Bank in Colorado Springs on March 20
of this year. But North Carolina has not seen a bank go under since
Crown National Bank of Charlotte in May of 1993.This year's
tally of 23 bank failures is nearing the total for all of 2008, when 25
U.S. banks were seized by regulators.
Two of the nation's largestsavings and loans failed that year: Washington Mutual Inc. and IndyMac
Corp.A growing number of banks are becoming insolvent as home
prices fall and unemployment rises, causing more individuals and
businesses to default on their debt.The FDIC estimated that the
closure of Cape Fear Bank will reduce the federal deposit insurance
fund by $131 million, and that the closure of New Frontier Bank will
lower it by another $670 million.As of the end of 2008, the
insurance fund stood at $18.9 billion -- the lowest level in nearly a
quarter-century, and down from $52.4 billion at the end of 2007.
The FDIC expects that bank failures will cost the insurance fund about $65
billion through 2013.The FDIC fund operates by charging
financial institutions, not with federal tax dollars. The agency has
been increasing fees and premiums in an effort to replenish the fund.At
the end of 2008, the FDIC had 252 banks and thrifts on its list of
troubled institutions, up from 171 in the third quarter of last year.

And somehow Wells Fargo makes a record profit mysteriously as our economy crumbles around us.....Can they consider bail-out $$ profit? More like theft in my opinion.

michael144/Admin wrote:And somehow Wells Fargo makes a record profit mysteriously as our economy crumbles around us.....Can they consider bail-out $$ profit? More like theft in my opinion.

The headline should have read this yesterday:
Wells Fargo Steals Record Amount in First Quarter: Stocks Rise