Oklahoma banks are still on solid financial footing

July 19, 2008 12:06 am

— Oklahoma bankers are correct in reassuring their customers banks in Oklahoma are on solid ground.
News about the collapse of IndyMac bank in California — and subsequent alarming comments made by some Washington lawmakers — produced a mini panic effect in some areas of the country about banks.
The situation with that investment bank was completely different from the situation with most banks in Oklahoma, and especially most of the banks in the Enid area.
Also, the home mortgage crisis contributing to this failure is much more severe on the east and west coasts than it is in Oklahoma.
While it’s always a good idea to diversify banking accounts and for large depositors to keep accounts in more than one bank, it’s also a sure bet that a bank is still the safest place to deposit money. Bank deposits are insured by Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., an independent agency of the federal government. FDIC protects against loss of deposits if an FDIC bank or savings association fails.
The other factor to consider is the Oklahoma economy is generally performing well. Also, over the past 25 years regulation and supervision of bank operations and risk management has improved dramatically.
If bank customers have questions about ways to make certain their deposits of over $100,000 are insured, we encourage them to contact their local banks.