Gary North

February 28, 2009

Did you know that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation has published two lists naming the safest banks in the country? Probably not. These lists are not called "America's Safest Banks." That would mean that there is another list: "America's Riskiest Banks." There is such a list, but it is not made available to the public by the FDIC.

So, being bureaucrats, the FDIC has hidden the lists of safe banks under bureaucratese. The two lists are called this:

List of Entities Opting Out of the Debt Guarantee Program

List of Entities Opting Out of the Transaction Account Guarantee Program

These banks have decided to avoid the regulation associated with these two FDIC programs. A bank that is not very confident about its ability to survive the present crisis would not opt out.

Naturally, the FDIC has attempted to cover up the implications of these lists. It says:

Please note that there are many valid reasons why an entity may have chosen to opt out of the TLG Program. Entities must make individual decisions based upon their business needs, including the costs of the Program as well as the benefits of participation. The decision to opt out in no way signals anything, either positively or negatively, about the financial health of the entity.

Ho, ho, ho. And, I might add, ha, ha, ha. Opting out sends a clear message: "We don't need no stinking subsidies!"

The lists are alphabetical: first by state, then by city. You can find the lists here:

To read them, you need a spreadsheet. Microsoft Excel works, but so does the free spreadsheet that is part of this 100% free program, OpenOffice. Download it here:

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