Is Your Bank Safe from Collapse?

Posted in Investing by Johns Wu
March 19, 2008 06:50 AM - 100 Comments

BEAR STEARNS BANK

JP Morgan Chase acquires the Bear Stearns financial empire for $260mln. That’s less than the $275mln the New York Yankees paid to secure A-Rod for 10 years!

Ordinary Americans, usually too preoccupied gossiping about junk like Tori Spellings new baby, are finally starting to realize that somethings not quite right with America’s financial system.

The US economy is–to put it bluntly–whack.

Housing prices are still falling. Home foreclosures are heightening. The US Dollar is depreciating. Gas prices are skyrocketing. Inflation is soaring.

Is this the beginning of the great bank run of 2008?
Ben Bernanke and Warren Buffet predicted in 2007 that we would see major bank failures in 2008. They seem to be right, but who is next?

What I am afraid of is seeing a large consumer bank fail. If a major bank like Washington Mutual, Bank of America, or Wells Fargo were to go under, Americans would panic and make a run on the banks, withdrawing their savings.

If you know anything about how banking works, bank runs create a vicious cycle of financial pain that does exponential damage to the way banks operate. To make things worse, there are rumors that the FDIC only has $54 billion to cover over $4 trillion in deposits.

What is the safest bank to put your money?
I honestly don’t know. This is an open discussion. I don’t have the answers, but I’m hoping maybe you guys have some input. Please leave a comment with your thoughts!

PS: If you want to understand how modern banking works, watch this YouTube vid!

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jonny said:
on March 19th at 08:39 am

Any swiss bank account!
Roger - Canoga Park said:
on March 19th at 01:29 pm

That was interesting…get it! Ha Ha. This reminded me of the crash in 1933. Could it happen again? Investing in family is better than investing in money.
Roger - Canoga Park said:
on March 19th at 01:30 pm

Any swiss bank account???? What are you talking about?
Roger - Canoga Park said:
on March 19th at 01:36 pm

I found this info that may clear up the swiss idea… http://www.myoffshoreaccounts.com/english/DeltaQuest_Swiss-bank-accounts
Bob said:
on March 19th at 03:35 pm

George Bush does for America what he’s already for Iraq. That the same people who have bribed the Congress and brought us Enron are free to consider their next round of financial terrorism with barely a whimper from the American people, is an indication of how rotten the whole system is and brainwashed and dumbed down the general public is.
Willy said:
on March 19th at 04:40 pm

Hey thanks for all of the valuable info here on the Bankaholic!
joseph letizia said:
on March 19th at 08:32 pm

The FDIC,even if they are under funded,WILL pay account holders up to the insured amounts,per the program rules;unless the USA is taken over by another country.If the U.S. goverment did not back the FDIC,there would be CIVIL WAR !!!!!! It’s very simple : If you want to take a risk invest in the stock market,mutal funds,ect ; but if you do not want to take any risk,and can settle for a smaller return put your money in a FDIC insured bank !!!!!!!
Sean said:
on March 20th at 01:26 am

This war is 260 billion a year. Look what it’s done for America. Keep this in mind November.
Henry said:
on March 20th at 01:30 am

The safest bank to have money in is probably ones with the most assets and has fewer liabilities such as subprime mortgages. You would probably need to get access to the bank investment portfolio. But I am not sure that would not be disclosed by any bank. The FDIC was created to prevent insolvency in the banking system, but that is premised on the possible failure of a small number of banks. If many banks failed, the insurance fund would probably be inadequate. What happens when a national banking system goes bankrupt? The French Revolution provides one previous example. Heads will roll!
Oz Shah said:
on March 20th at 04:22 am

well..from watching the 5 part series above (which was very informative), its all clear now the ceiling is finally falling and there may be blood in the streets soon. No wonder why Islamic Banking is so popular.
chemdiox said:
on March 20th at 04:50 am

screw bush and the fed! it’s all their fault!
RON PAUL 2008 said:
on March 20th at 11:22 am

ron paul should be the next president. only he can fix and prevent financial crises like this from happening again
Denise said:
on March 20th at 03:11 pm

The strongest bank operating within the United States is RBC Bank

Royal Bank of Canada
David said:
on March 20th at 03:25 pm

http://www.solari.com/banks

http://www.solari.com/campaign/Tapeworm20.htm
David said:
on March 20th at 03:34 pm

Where would Jesus bank, and other good folks too?
http://www.scoop.co.nz/stories/HL0407/S00040.htm
http://www.solari.com/store/where_would_jesus_bank.php
Tyler said:
on March 21st at 04:04 am

Actually, I’m in luck in that I am a dual Canadian-US citizen, plus some friends all over the world. I’ve split my emergency savings funds into US, Canadian, UK and Norwegian accounts (the latter two being managed by my friends for me). I feel better knowing that 1, I have funds in the places I might go to in times of trouble and 2, that I am not reliant on any particular country’s banking system for living cash in an emergency.
Bankaholic.com said:
on March 21st at 04:22 am

Great strategic move, Tyler.
David said:
on March 21st at 06:38 am

It’s my understanding that federally chartered banks have more reserve requirements than state charted banks. I keep some money in China where they only lend 60 cents on each dollar deposited. I’ve heard that US banks (3-4% Cash reservers) are leveraged up to 70 times each dollar deposited if you consider equity in subprime and dirivites. Gov. buyouts will lead to inflation/higher rates. Best to move to hard assets and pay off all debt. Up grade the car, pay off student loans etc.. Got caught under a failed S&L back in the 80’s. Took several months to get liquid again. Best to spread some around to several banks short term. If some banks start failing, many will jump to Real Estate foreclosures. Obama will make section 8’s a good bet. Metals are topping. China should float Yaun after Olympics.
nopcbs said:
on March 22nd at 01:35 pm

If you want to bash Bush, at least do it for something he is responsible for (getting suckered by Sadaam who was playing his own twin game of not having WMD’s, but fervently wanting the Iranians, who he feared more than the US, to think he did and acting that way – that’s what he told a CIA spook after his capture and it does make sense), Bush and his advisors should have given that possability more weight, but the fear of Sadaam getting and using a NUKE was so great they did not.

People, this stock market/credit cisis has zero to do with Bush. What it is all about is loose credit given to people who should not have been given it to buy houses they could not afford otherwise. The blame is primarally on the bankers for giving the loans and EQUALLY on the people who were taking loans that they KNEW they did not deserve and could not afford. It was fed by the idiotic TV shows showing greedy clowns “flipping” houses after a few weeks/months for big profits after a little fixing up. It is banker greed and home-owner/home-flipper greed. Yep, it’s the stupid bankers and your stupid neighbors that did it. Greenspan is in large part to blame for for not speaking out about this nonsense soon enough and loudly enough. If he had spoken out and threatened the banks with testifying before congress about how dangerous what they were doing was, they’d have reigned in the loose lending practices and the housing market would have cooled less abruptly.

Exactly NONE of this has anything to do with Bush. In fact the easy mortgages that caused this is a mantra of the Democrats to get more people into home ownership or mortgage ownership, at least.

Go hate Bush all you want, but if you want to hate someone for the credit crisis you need to look at someone else. Maybe yourself.
o.t. said:
on March 22nd at 08:30 pm

oh, i’m sorry, i didn’t realize the crashing of our economy was my fault. thanks for letting me know nopcbs i will try to stop.
Bronco said:
on March 22nd at 11:45 pm

No, it is Bush and Co. Those pricks didn’t regulate the banks’ selfish lending policies. His buddies in the banks make a fortune, resign, bank goes bang, middle class Joe bails em out with his kids’ future and Bush and his cronies laugh at the mess we suck up while they rape the USA. Wake up to what is going on. The military and the rich are raping the middle class to create a new aristocracy on the backs of us fools.
Robert Young said:
on March 23rd at 12:19 am

If you think housing is losing its value now, just wait till all the baby-boomers start retiring and/or dieing and selling their big, empty houses!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Robert Young said:
on March 23rd at 12:23 am

I forgot to mention that you can buy inflation indexed bonds from the Government of England. All you have to do is establish a bank account in England.
The real interest rate is fantastic, and there is no tax on it.
Bankaholic said:
on March 23rd at 03:49 am

Robert,
Can you provide more info about these England indexed bonds, especially the tax-free part?
o.t. said:
on March 23rd at 03:42 pm

#
Bronco said:
on March 22nd at 11:45 pm

No, it is Bush and Co. Those pricks didn’t regulate the banks’ selfish lending policies. His buddies in the banks make a fortune, resign, bank goes bang, middle class Joe bails em out with his kids’ future and Bush and his cronies laugh at the mess we suck up while they rape the USA. Wake up to what is going on. The military and the rich are raping the middle class to create a new aristocracy on the backs of us fools.

-Bronco maybe we should listen to
o.t. said:
on March 23rd at 03:46 pm

Bronco said:
on March 22nd at 11:45 pm

No, it is Bush and Co. Those pricks didn’t regulate the banks’ selfish lending policies. His buddies in the banks make a fortune, resign, bank goes bang, middle class Joe bails em out with his kids’ future and Bush and his cronies laugh at the mess we suck up while they rape the USA. Wake up to what is going on. The military and the rich are raping the middle class to create a new aristocracy on the backs of us fools.

-Bronco maybe we should listen to Bronco said:
on March 22nd at 11:45 pm

No, it is Bush and Co. Those pricks didn’t regulate the banks’ selfish lending policies. His buddies in the banks make a fortune, resign, bank goes bang, middle class Joe bails em out with his kids’ future and Bush and his cronies laugh at the mess we suck up while they rape the USA. Wake up to what is going on. The military and the rich are raping the middle class to create a new aristocracy on the backs of us fools.

-Bronco maybe we should listen to nopcbs and stop blaming the people that institute the economic policies and start blaming the people who have no power to create our policies like ourselves! don’t be mean to bush, just because he screwed our economy up and lied to the public in order to get us stuck in a war costing trillions of dollars with no pull out plan what-so-ever. in fact, why don’t we show bush there’s no hard feelings and let him invade iran and get caught up in another trillion dollar war. oh, and let’s give halliburton (cheney’s old company) the contracts too !
o.t. said:
on March 23rd at 03:47 pm

we wouldn’t want to hurt bush’s feelings now would we?
Timecop67 said:
on March 23rd at 04:42 pm

If you could roll back the time and allow Gore to win the election don’t you think the country would be in a lot better shape today? I would have to say yes but there are some that might disagree.
Rick Cain said:
on March 24th at 01:50 am

Of course this country would be in better shape if Gore had won. Heck the moment Bush took power the economy started dying its death of 1000 bad Bush policies. The economy has been a rollercoaster since the chimp took power, and it ain’t over yet!
Robert Young said:
on March 25th at 10:30 pm

Hey, NOPCBS, Truman said, The Buck Stops Here.
Why should Bush be any different?
Dan said:
on March 27th at 01:53 pm

many of you are stuck in the past…. let go
look at your kids, your house, all that you have
money is the byproduct of all the good decisions you made
the bad ones… learn from them, then let them go
invest in your family, they are the return on your investment
Mason Peck said:
on March 27th at 08:36 pm

I would like more detailed and truthful information and or where to get more information on the English Bonds that interest is tax free. I’m a larger indivudla income investor that is looking to cut tax level as well. Currently reviewing short term Indiana muni bonds. mpeck83495@aol.com
DUDEKJW said:
on March 29th at 05:26 am

BROTHERS AND SISTERS,

IN CONCLUSION, THE “ROMAN IMPERIUM” IS FOLLING A PART. ANY SUGESTIONS WHERE TO GO?
Perry said:
on March 29th at 09:13 pm

Does anyone out there have any experience dealing with Swiss Group Millenium Bank aka (http://www.mlnbank.com) offering 8% on a 5 year CD? Sounds too good to be true.
tim said:
on March 30th at 12:29 pm

Google Results 1 – 10 of about 25,200 for Millenium Bank and ponzi.
http://edumacation.com/MillenniumBankKingstown

simply stick with FDIC insured accounts or take a risk
Niles Wentworth said:
on April 7th at 04:53 am

The mortgage problem is NOT Bush’s fault, though I have no love for the man. The problem originated on the left, because the left decried redlining in home lending and demanded that minorities be given loans. So, they got their loans and now look what happened. No way is this Bush’s fault. Greenspan certainly should have done something, and could have, but spoke only of a “little froth.” What an idiot.
S.D. Simpson said:
on April 8th at 05:08 am

Safe guard your savings by tranfering into metals. Copper has the best opportunity for growth.
Will said:
on April 10th at 12:19 am

ING DIRECT is doing really great they would be a bank to put your money!!!
Justin said:
on April 11th at 07:45 pm

this really isn’t George Bush’s fault as much as the Bush haters like to think it is. As an independent conservative, Bush has has been a disappointment. The war however, is one thing he did get right. In case you haven’t noticed, you need to pull your head out of the sand and check out what radical Islam is doing in Europe. They are slowly taking it over in the veil of political correctness, fascism, and breeding/immigration rates. Iran is growing increasingly hostile, and if America won’t do anything, Israel sure as heck will.

As far as the economy goes, more than half of our federal budget each years goes to nanny state entitlement programs put in by new deal democrats that seek to redistribute wealth. The war is no where near as expensive as the programs liberal democrats put in place, but pressure has to be put on the Iraqi’s to liberate their own country. China has us by the balls. They trillions of our treasury notes and if we default, our dollar will go down the drain. Oil is so damn expensive because environmental nazi’s wont let us achieve short term energy independence. The cost of food is up because of ethanol mandates. Bush isn’t responsible for the bankrupt ponzi schemes of government entitlement programs, nor is he responsible for lenders and borrowers making stupid loans.

Basically, we are screwed. It’s only a matter of time till this house of cards falls. That’s why I’m such a strong advocate of Texas secession. We’ve got the resources, people, industry, and economy to do just fine while the United States goes down the drain. Houston alone is home to more than 100 fortune 500 companies. While other states are getting hit by the housing collapse, we’ve actually seen prices remain constant and even increase over the last year. We just have to get Perry out of office. That guy is pushing the NAFTA super highway like it’s coke. Screw that. I don’t want any part of the up and coming north american union.
SailorSue said:
on April 12th at 07:40 pm

Justin I think your idea of Texas sucession from the US is a brilliant idea. But, please don’t forget to take that jackass “W” with you. Texas sooo deserves that idiot.

Oh, by the way Justin I think you need to go do your homework, for 90% of what you spouted is untrue. Your obviously what is wrong with this country, just plain DUMB, just like your wonderful “W”.
Hana Hawaii said:
on April 14th at 03:16 pm

Anybody in CA knows about Community West Bank’s Great Checking Account? They don’t have many branches, but they offer 5% APR on 10 monthly ATM debit purchase and 1 monthly debit payment transaction.

This offer sounds so sweet, but I never heard of the name of this bank.
john said:
on April 22nd at 04:50 am

Banks will never fail, especially now that sweeping new powers will be given to the Fed to correct any institution that’s a threat to the financial system. The bad news is that as long as as the Fed has the power to create money out of nothing, the value of your money once you get it back will be worth far less. If you really want to have an understanding how it all works watch Aaron Russo’s film America: Freedom to Fascism. Please remember this: the Federal Reserve is not a government institution but rather a private bank that is unaccountable and remains unaudited since it’s inception. Please take the time to listen to Ron Paul on Google Video. He is the only candidate that is truly tackling these issues head on.
Forsi said:
on April 22nd at 04:25 pm

Dear God, how am I supposed to buy 330k worth of copper and where do I put it? I do not trust the metals stocks and won’t go there, preferring to actually hold the metals in case of an all out crash.
pepo said:
on April 24th at 07:44 am

“I keep some money in China where they only lend 60 cents on each dollar deposited. ”

ROFL! Do some research on China’s NPLs. You think we got bank problems over here..OMG.
WF said:
on May 14th at 05:28 am

Put it in AAA rated bank. Only AAA credit rated bank up to this day is Wells Fargo. FDIC has 99.5 years to pay you back you 100k. )
ryan said:
on May 14th at 05:31 am

Sure, put it in a savings account with 5%! Then wait for FDIC to pay you back!
tim keenan said:
on June 26th at 10:15 am

Agree with WF – Wells Fargo is rated the most secure US bank by the credit ratings agencies.
Rick said:
on July 15th at 08:05 pm

WHERE IS LEE HARVEY OSWALD WHEN YOU NEED HIM??
Albert said:
on July 18th at 02:48 am

There is only one safe bank, HSBC.
smc341 said:
on July 21st at 09:15 am

maybe it’s time to buy gold.
JEESE said:
on July 25th at 08:59 pm

THANKS TO GEORGE BUSH THIS COUNTRY IS GOING DOWN !SEND MORE MONEY TO IRAQ.UNTILL WE HAVE NO MORE!! .BUT AT LEAST IRAQ IS GETTING BETTER, …………
EDog said:
on August 20th at 04:38 am

Wamu pretty safe. 3.75 percent intrest rate, can’t beat that rate. If this bank goes under the feds will have to bail it out. To big to fail
Paul Smith said:
on August 21st at 01:19 pm

The bank of Gold Bullion.In other words, buy troy ounces of gold and hide them
david w d said:
on August 21st at 01:36 pm

Gold and Silver Bullion, the worlds oldest and most secure currency
Chrysotheras said:
on August 22nd at 06:24 am

WIthout any trace of doubt…
BULLION!!!
(Au, Ag or Pt)
jim williams said:
on August 23rd at 05:16 pm

The upcoming elections are so easy to figure out!

Other than choice for prez., simply vote against all incumbents! Doesn’t make any difference whether you are R/or D. It is the only way” we the people” can put in term limits (which is sorely needed).

here are the benefits:
1. instead of being elected to office and immediately working on their re-election, maybe those elected might actually try to do something for the country the short time they are in office.

2.with just a few years in office, the special interests groups might not feel it is worth all of the big$$$ they can give to a cadidate and have he/she obligated to them.

3.this might eliminate the $million plus campaigns knowing they can’t become a life long politician.

4. I am sure there are other benefits and would like to hear other responses
zak sadaq said:
on August 31st at 06:28 pm

i put my money in jordan where i get pay 5.5% FDIC i have my money with them for two years
John said:
on September 7th at 03:28 pm

Bla Bla Bla … Nonsense. I have heard the predictions of impending economic collapse during every recession in my lifetime. “It’s the end of America, we are doomed!” In the end, the US economy charges back with a roar stronger than ever and charging ahead. We have faced far more difficult problems than the current ones and defeated them all.

The United States still has the strongest, most vibrant, most resilient economy in history and this is nothing but a temporary setback. The fundamentals of this country’s economy are sound, strong and will weather the current set of challenges as they have always done.

It is important for Democrats to convince everyone that the economy is about to collapse. They rely on creating all the gloom and doom bad news they can to try to convince you that Mr. “Change” is going to be your savior. If things are good, it is bad for the Democrats. They need you to think they are bad. So they use their propaganda department in the mainstream media to brainwash you with endless gloom and doom stories about the economy just hoping that they CAN do something like cause a run on the banks, or other things that will intentionally damage the economy so that they can sell their platform.

It’s politics, not economics.

If I were you I wouldn’t bet any money against the US economy. It’s a sure way to go broke.
Tom said:
on September 9th at 04:54 pm

Wells Fargo is probaly the strongest bank out there with one of the best ratings any bank has had in the last 15 years.
mnm said:
on September 11th at 03:38 am

Best thing invest in UK/ Europe/ India… remember Europe is a rising financial power. I personally bank in UK & it gives good interest rates. Those who dont have option of Canada/ UK,etc.. try puttin gyour money in 3-4 different banks, especially international banks like HSBC, Citibank, etc…
mnm said:
on September 11th at 05:32 am

check these links..n pls feedback.
http://web.nickshanks.com/finance/market-value
http://www.forbes.com/2007/12/20/microfinance-philanthropy-credit-biz-cz_ms_1220microfinance_table.html — though this link is for MFI there is one for banks as well. i have seen it but cant find it now.
davemon said:
on September 15th at 07:27 pm

Diabetes costs $174,000,000,000 per year in the USA and people talk about wasted money in a war? Add up ALL the self-induced medical costs racked up by fat ugly americans and start complaining about that. Still we ride escataors, fight for that closer parking space, smoke our brains out and stuff our fat faces full of food. And the two big leftwing entitlement programs have so many pigs feeding at the trough they are about to collapse.
Lou said:
on September 17th at 01:21 am

Who the hell is edog? And what the hell are you talking about wamu being safe. Have you been living in a cave. Their stock is down to $4 and hopefully JPMorgan Chase buys them out and gets even stronger. I would stay with chase bank!!!
Marcos said:
on September 17th at 05:53 pm

Rabobank, N.A.
Troy said:
on September 17th at 10:45 pm

I heard FDIC INSURED supposedly only pays 50 to 25 % on the dollar. So, no matter what you still get screwed. How about the bank of Sealy’s Posture Pedic Mattresses? All kidding aside, where do the rich have their money? Bush, Cheney, Buffet, Gates etc….?
Lane B said:
on September 20th at 06:04 am

Who’s fault is this? Let’s be real honest. Sub-prime lending is at fault and was mandated in 1999 during the Clinton adminstration. Banks were forced to play ball or suffer penalties and fines. This is fact and not opinion. In fact, we can point to some that are leading Obama’s campaign for our current crisis… in particular the failing of Freddie Mae and Mac for which his campaign leaders are responsible for taking hundreds of millions of dollars. Fact, not opinion, leads to the way to conservative and unregulated truth. The blame rests with those that passed legislation that forced the financial companies to unqualified minorities and those without income…. Dems and Republican’s alike.
Leonard said:
on September 22nd at 12:53 pm

Never in the history of mankind have so many been so misinformed or dishonest. Both parties share blame, that is why I am an indepent. The democrats are mostly to blame and this subprime mess is their doing, not the current administration. It started with Clinton, but the mess started long ago when Congress decided to fund social programs that return nothing to our economy. You cannot tax your way out of debt. Only a fool would think so. The opposite is true. You must create jobs to put those on the taxpayers back into the work force so they can start paying their own way which will stimulate the economy. Allowing you emontions to do your thinking provides the results given on most of the comments provided. Not true and of little value to providing a solution to our problems.
Blaire said:
on September 27th at 04:40 am

Rabobank, N.A. is THE safest bank in the U.S. They are AAA rated (the best rating a bank can get), funds are diversified in many countries (over 25), and they are privately owned and not traded on the stock market. This is where I keep my money.
yvon said:
on September 28th at 07:57 pm

Please stop the US nonsence like always, I think that the USA peoples should come down whith there feet on the ground and not as I have always heard we are the biggest, the strongest. The USA has made some good thinks in the past, like liberating Europe in 1945, but after that together with Russia, Chaves and Islamic fanatics they have only created troubles in the world. The world needs peace, better control, better and honest politicians, economist, etc. That is enougth, I recommend to spread money in several banks taking into account the garanted amount varies from country to country, Germany has the best garanty, other European countries garantee up to 35.000€, so that is what you can hope to recover if the bank goes crash. I recommend Luxembourg & Swiss. Recomended Banks are RaboBank Holland, Dexia Belgium and Luxembourg BIL, Lloyds TSB in the UK, CDC in France, Wells Fargo in USA, Landwirtschaftliche Rentebank in Germany. Those are the safest bank but this is not 100% garanteed. buy bonds from governent, and put some money under a bigstone in a metallic box in your garden. Good luck
Deb said:
on September 29th at 05:53 am

Sorry about WaMu. filed bankrupsy today,,,,,Wachovia merging with either Wells Fargo or CitiBank….Scared yet…..we are a long way from the bottom, but the “government can only “bail out” so much….boils down to which lobbyist is promising the most money for “their” cause. If we let things fall, as they have before, the market comes back…its called a free market for a reason….no more government in our busines, its just getting in more and more everyday….can we say, ” big brother is more than just watching yet?
elizabeth said:
on September 29th at 10:01 pm

Cooperative banks insure a deposit in full, even over the FDIC max. $100,000. The interest may not be the greatest, but your money is safe.
Ash said:
on October 2nd at 03:57 am

BB&T is holding strong for almost a century…. BB&T even paid out dividends and survived the great depression… smart decisions on behalf of our CEO Allison have kept BB&T strong for the last three decades. Take ur money to BB&T…
Jackson said:
on October 7th at 08:22 am

Wells Fargo is the top-rated bank by Moody’s and S&P in the United States and among the highest-rated in the world, as well as the only bank in the US to have a AAA rating from both major ratings firms. Seeing it in the same sentence with WaMu demonstrates your lack of knowledge of the banking industry.
Jackson said:
on October 7th at 08:38 am

And while we’re on the subject:

The City of Baltimore actually sued Wells Fargo and a few other lenders for “charging black and hispanic people” higher fees.
SORRY! Whether anyone wants to believe them the statistics are there! Minorities on the average have less income, less credit, and higher default rates. Thus, when a black person walked into a bank and applied for a loan, he is more statistically likely to pay higher fees. Why? Because he’s black? NO! Because as a black male he is more likely to have less perfect credit than his fellow citizens of European descent. So it shouldn’t be surprising to the City of Baltimore that the majority (60%) of black people with WF mortgages pay higher interest rates. It’s all based upon credit ratings. The computer systems at the banks don’t give a flying f*ck what color you are, if you have bad credit, it’s going to jack your interest rate up because the risk is higher.
Daniel said:
on October 7th at 11:43 pm

I have my money in the USAA bank, which is a US Government bank made for members of the armed forces. I don’t see my bank collapsing any time soon.
Ibook said:
on October 10th at 02:14 pm

Crazy stuff man
Agent Jim said:
on October 11th at 11:56 am

Well WAMU basically failed and there was no run on the banks. As long as there’s faith in the U.S. Government standing behind the deposits, there’s not going to be a run on the banks. U.S. Government fails to pay off on a failure, then it’s not going to make any difference anyway.
ernie the bear said:
on October 21st at 11:45 pm

forget bank accounts.. if you’re looking for a safe haven to invest in, buy good farmland with a sustainable water source – this is the only type of asset which can provide any kind of positive return over the next few years of deleveraging, deflation and global recession. sure govts have put a backstop to prevent a run on the banks.. but what about a run on the currency? with so much debt to be issued, they’ll be printing cash forever..

good luck
MB said:
on October 23rd at 12:44 pm

I think BB&T is pretty safe. Atleast I hope so
jo said:
on October 31st at 02:16 am

Bankrate.com offers rating of the safest banks, but I am not certain what criteria they use, so always cross reference with other rating agencies, but take with a pinch of salt.

Saying which is the safest bank is like telling a starving army which man is holding the candy bar. It would lead to a rush out (run on other banks) and a rush in.

Some people in California say Union bank of California is safe because of their conservative lending practices being Japanese owned, but their rates are very low, so that’s the trade off. Rabobank is Dutch I think and has a high safety reputation. Some of the very big players like HSBC, Citi, BoA, ING mostly have been very exposed to the subprime lending, but are still around and offer fairly competitive rates.

Best policy is listen to the grapevine, and monitor gossip weekly for rumors that a bank is in trouble. If you hear even a whimper move your funds immediately. Make sure your funds a spread over several banks to reduce risk but be selective, and ALWAYS check your FDIC covered. So

1) Listen to market gossip
2) Be selective
3) Be able to move funds quickly
4) Ensure FDIC cover in place
Ed said:
on November 25th at 09:04 pm

I saw that Wells Fargo acquired Wachovia. Does that mean that CD’s from Wachovia are now as safe as those from Wells Fargo or can they still default separately?
Live Well Simply said:
on December 9th at 04:35 am

You’re so smart!
Jack said:
on January 8th at 03:35 am

Invest in farmland or multi-family real estate (apartment buildings). Thats old school investing right there.
Trader Mom said:
on January 11th at 09:13 pm

I am a stock trader. All my money is in stocks. And I am doing just fine since I short stocks 50% of the time.
Ruben said:
on January 11th at 10:34 pm

Banks are doing fine, they just have to find another way to ripoff people after the mortgage mess.
Ray said:
on January 14th at 06:43 pm

Citi is toast. Government is forcing them to sell their only profitable division to raise money. And this after they took what 20 billion tax payer dollars. We need to let these banks fail.
Mike M said:
on January 17th at 01:53 am

Washington Mutual is not a major bank. Neither is Wells Fargo.

There’s a thing called the FDIC. It has money to back up your savings up to $250k now (it used to be $100k), there’s a sign on every drive-thru at every bank in the US of A. This is what prevents runs on banks: The US federal government.

Writing a rumor in bold does not make it any more valid.

Your fear mongering is ludicrous. People like you should be subject to social darwinism accelerated.
J. Loiacano said:
on January 17th at 04:47 am

Well, well, well, Mike M. Where should I start. If social darwinism where the case, I believe I would call you the do-do. Though the numbers may not be exactly 54B compared to 4T in the “rumors” it is fairly well known that if there were a domino effect run on the banks, that the FDIC does not have enough money to cover all of them. One, maybe. Two, would be pushing it. Granted, the assets of the failing banks would be bought by other larger banks along with the liabilities so the government would most likely not have to step in. The only situation where the government would have to step in, on more than just a temporary basis, would be many banks failing at once with no other banks willing to buy them out. And in this case, the FDIC does not have enough. Kind of a catch-22.

And how can you say that Washington Mutual is (was) not a major bank? Or Wells Fargo for that matter? Washington Mutual was THE oldest and largest savings and loans institution in the US. and Wells Fargo is the fourth largest bank in the US.

And just because the sign at the drive-thru says your money is insured??? Please, let me crap in a box and put a sign on it saying it is worth $50. Enough people that think in those terms and I could be a millionaire.

I apologize if it seems that I am picking on you. It was just that your’s was the last post and I found it entirely laughable.

Back to the subject at hand, though most of the bad seems to be behind us with the banks (hopefully), your safest bet IMHO is to stick with local credit unions which offer most banking services. There are many advantages (and a few disadvantages) to using credit unions like these. But, every person should check if it works for their specific situations and needs.
personal finance ? said:
on January 23rd at 11:19 am

That was a great video describing the way banks work. It should be shown in every 8th grade classroom.

The banks have totally screwed up, but I don’t think the entire blame is on them. If people could take better care of their own finances and not get themselves into debt they can’t pay back, the banks wouldn’t be as bad as they are.
Chris said:
on January 23rd at 02:30 pm

http://www.rabodirect.ie/media-marketing/press/press-releases/worlds-safest-bank.aspx
Andy said:
on January 27th at 04:55 pm

Repeat after me, only invest in banks that are FDIC insured. As long as the US government is in business, then nothing to worry about.
aidan said:
on February 6th at 03:09 am

i agree wit you personal finance..people must have control also..
Bernz said:
on February 10th at 05:37 pm

Well, my wife is a bank executive of one of local community banks and we do have money deposited there although we have reduce our savings account with them by almost 50% and moved it to another bank. Their bank is not in good shape as well. They either have been trying to sell the bank and or looking for investors. Bad loans are the main issues with their bank. She told me the other day that it’s more of like wait and see for them in the next six months. They are FDIC insured by the way.
Bonds information said:
on February 12th at 02:21 pm

I guess we’ll never be certain. At least not until this crisis goes away.

Michelle
LevelHead said:
on February 14th at 11:53 pm

Put money in Credit Unions.
They are locally operated and actually owned by their members, on a not for profit basis.
Since they are not searching for huge profits, they did not make the risky investments that pulled the banks under.
Every dollar you put in a credit union is supporting your localities financial security.
They are FDIC insured, so the government will back them up if they do fail.
sir jorge said:
on February 17th at 12:44 am

comic books, invest in comic books
John Kaplan said:
on February 25th at 09:23 am

I think the safest American bank that has more than 5 banks is Chase. jpmorgan are the only ones that didn’t invest so heavily in subprime mortgages as all the other banks so they didnt have to write off so much debt. For the people looking to get high savings rates and hope FDIC will cover them, think again. If chase didnt buy out WaMu, the Federal government didn’t have the funds to pay out all the depositors. So it could take up to a 100 years for you to get your money back. I say take the lower rates and sleep well at night.
Pete said:
on April 5th at 04:28 pm

I believe the safest banks to have your money in are the credit unions. They have much more stringent rules about lending money and most of them don’t loan on homes, as a result their exsposure to the problem is small and they have a seperate goverment backed insurance progrom like the FDIC. I also believe the big 4 Bank of America, Wells Fargo, US bank and JP Morgan are safe. The US government has allready given them money and won’t allow their investment go to waste.
Krystina said:
on May 26th at 01:30 pm

If you want to blame anyone, might as well blame woodrow wilson since he was bought out basically by the fed. Look at the economy broadview since 1913 along with the world wars and other wars? Is is a coincidence or was it planned for others to profit? Our founders knew central banks (the fed) were a factory of evil, that is why they left the clutches of englands central bank! Presidents are only puppets to the feds clutches, don’t blame Bush or Obama. Blame the fed.
Why Questions said:
on August 6th at 04:43 pm

It’s all about money. The banks will do anything to get to your money… So I am not afraid of them going to collapse. They will all survive, one way or the other.

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