Freedom Bank of Bradenton, Fla., became the 17th bank insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. to be closed down this year, the FDIC announced Friday evening.
Fifth Third Bank (FTIB), which is based in Grand Rapids, Mich., was named by the FDIC as the receiver of the assets. All four branches of Freedom Bank will open on Monday as branches of Fifth Third.
“There is no need for customers to change their banking relationship to retain their deposit insurance coverage,” the FDIC said. “Over the weekend, depositors of Freedom 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.”
However, it cautioned that “Customers of both banks should continue to use their existing branches until Fifth Third can fully integrate the deposit records of Freedom Bank.”
The FDIC estimated that its insurance fund will take a hit of between $80 million and $104 million.
Freedom Bank had total assets of $287 million and total deposits of $254 million as of Oct. 17. Fifth Third agreed to assume all the deposits for a premium of 1.16%.
Fifth Third is also going to purchase about $36 million of assets from Freedom Bank, and the FDIC will hold onto the remaining assets for the time being.
Customers can call the FDIC at 800-591-2767 with any questions, or visit the FDIC's Web site at http://www.fdic.gov/bank/individual/failed/freedom.html
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