The stream of Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. auctions has slowed significantly this year. Only nine insolvent lenders have come up for auction through mid-February 2012, compared with 22 in 2011, 20 in 2010 and 14 in 2009.
Regulators put 92 lenders up for sale last year, and, as reported in this space last month, 25 of them drew bids from Little Rock’s Bank of the Ozarks, Conway’s Centennial Bank, Fayetteville’s Arvest Bank or Pine Bluff’s Simmons First National Bank.
Now for a little more history. The same quartet was in action during 2010 when the body count of insolvent institutions closed and placed for auction was even higher: 157. In all but eight of those actions across the nation and Puerto Rico, a buyer stepped into the ownership picture compared with only two that failed to attract a bid during 2011.
Among the Arkansas Four, Centennial Bank led the way in bidding and winning FDIC-assisted deals during 2010. Centennial made 10 unsuccessful bids on lenders with total assets of more than $6.2 billion and closed on six lenders (more than any other bank in 2010) with combined total assets of about $1.4 billion.
All of Centennial’s bidding was focused on Florida in deals that stretched from the Panhandle to the Keys, except for one. The bank made an unsuccessful bid, along with Bank of the Ozarks and Simmons, on First Southern Bank of Batesville.
Bank of the Ozarks, the most active FDIC bidder of the four in 2011, made eight unsuccessful bids on lenders with total assets of nearly $3.5 billion during 2010. The bank closed FDIC-assisted deals on four lenders with combined total assets of $1.1 billion for the year.
According to the available filings, Centennial beat out Bank of the Ozarks in vying for Bayside Savings Bank of Port Saint Joe, Fla., the only known head-to-head 2010 bid with an Arkansas winner.
Unsuccessful FDIC-Assisted 2010 Bids
Centennial Bank
Feb. 19
Marco Community Bank
Marco Island, Fla.
Total Assets: $119.6 million
April 16
First Federal Bank of North Florida
Palatka, Fla.
Total Assets: $440.1 million
AmericanFirst Bank
Clermont, Fla.
Total Assets: $104 million
Riverside National Bank of Florida
Fort Pierce, Fla.
Total Assets: $3.4 billion
May 28
Bank of Florida-Southeast
Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Total Assets: $595.3 million
Bank of Florida-Tampa Bay
Tampa, Fla.
Total Assets: $240.5 million
June 25
Peninsula Bank
Englewood, Fla.
Total Assets: $630.2 million
July 16
Olde Cypress Community Bank
Clewiston, Fla.
Total Assets: $161.3 million
July 23
Sterling Bank
Lantana, Fla.
Total Assets: $355 million
Dec. 17
First Southern Bank
Batesville
Total Assets: $191.8 million
Bank of the Ozarks
July 16
First National Bank of the South
Spartanburg, S.C.
Total Assets: $619.4 million
July 23
Crescent Bank & Trust Co.
Jasper, Ga.
Total Assets: $970.2 million
July 30
NorthWest Bank & Trust
Acworth, Ga.
Total Assets: $160.8 million
Bayside Savings Bank
Port Saint Joe, Fla.
Total Assets: $64.3 million
Coastal Community Bank
Panama City Beach, Fla.
Total Assets: $377.5 million
Sept. 17
The Peoples Bank
Winder, Ga.
Total Assets: $447.2 million
Nov. 12
Darby Bank & Trust Co.
Vidalia, Ga.
Total Assets: $654.7 million
Dec. 17
First Southern Bank
Batesville
Total Assets: $191.8 million
Simmons First National Bank
Oct. 15
Premier Bank
Jefferson City, Mo.
Total Assets: $989.4 million
Dec. 17
First Southern Bank
Batesville
Total Assets: $191.8 million
Arvest Bank
Oct. 22
Hillcrest Bank
Overland Park, Kan.
Total Assets: $1.5 billion
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