BANK FAILURES UP

A little bit over a year and a half ago I wrote that more bank failures were coming. Here are some numbers (FDIC list of banks here).

* In 2008 25 banks failed (the market collapse didn't start until late 2008).

* In 2009 140 banks failed.

* To date, this year we've had 118 bank failures.

Since we're only 3/4 of the way through 2010 we should expect bank failures this year to exceed 2009. The real problem, however, seems to be the number of banks that are on the FDIC's Problem/Watch List. This number has gone up from 65 in 2007, to 171 in 2008, to 416 in 2009, and 829 to date in 2010.

Read into this what you want. But rest assured, this is not good news.

- Mark

ADDENDUM: Here's a video from newsy.com that touches on the topic of bank failures. The piece discusses whether current events are a sign of a market correction (a move towards a new equilibrium) or a sign of a slowing economy.

pp

Multisource political news, world news, and entertainment news analysis by Newsy.com