Superior Bank is One of 6 Failed Banks This Week
Apr 17, 2011
The following article was published in the Tallahassee Democrat on April 17, 2011:
Superior Bank is One of 6 Failed Banks This Week
Federal regulators Friday shut down the Birmingham, Ala.-based Superior Bank, including three offices in Tallahassee. The 73 branches of Superior Bank re-opened Saturday as branches of Superior Bank, N.A.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation said it will continue to insure deposits and that customers should keep banking as they always have.
“Customers of Superior Bank should continue to use their existing branch,” the FDIC said in a news release. “Over the weekend, depositors of Superior Bank can access their money by writing checks or using ATM or debit cards. Checks drawn on the bank will continue to be processed. Loan customers should continue to make their payments as usual.”
Along with the Tallahassee locations, Superior Bank has three offices in Calhoun County and one office apiece in Franklin, Gulf and Jackson counties. Superior Bank had $3 billion in assets as of Dec. 31, 2010.
Regulators closed a total of six banks Friday in Alabama, Georgia, Minnesota and Mississippi, bringing the number of bank failures this year to 34.
Superior Bank was closed by the Office of Thrift Supervision, which appointed the FDIC as receiver. The release said the FDIC entered into an agreement with Superior Bank, National Association, Birmingham, Ala., a newly chartered bank subsidiary of Community Bancorp LLC, Houston, to assume all of the deposits of Superior Bank.
In addition, the FDIC and Superior Bank N.A. agreed to share losses on $1.84 billion of the failed bank’s loans and other assets.
Superior Bank received $69 million in taxpayer funds in December 2008 under the government’s financial bailout program, Treasury Department data show. Its failure is expected to cost the deposit insurance fund $259.6 million.
Also shuttered were Birmingham-based Nexity Bank, with $793.7 million in assets; Bartow County Bank of Cartersville, Ga., with $330.2 million in assets; New Horizons Bank in East Ellijay, Ga., with $110.7 million in assets; Rosemount National Bank in Rosemount, Minn., with $37.6 million in assets; and Heritage Banking Group, based in Carthage, Miss., with $224 million in assets.