Bankers rejoice: Failure list shrinks

Here's a statistical nugget sure to make Gulf Coast bankers smile: Regulators haven't shut down a locally based bank through the first five months of 2012.

In fact, the last Gulf Coast-based lender to get the failure notice was Clearwater-based Old Harbor Bank, back on Oct. 21. That closure was the fourth on the Gulf Coast in 2011, according to Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. data. That figure was down from 2010, when there were six Gulf Coast failures and 2009, when there were a recession-high nine local failures.

With 24 bank failures nationwide in 2012 through June 1, down from the 45 failures through the first five months of 2011, it's a slowdown trend that's developed nationwide, too. Three of the 24 failures in 2012 were Florida banks: Belleview-based Central Florida State Bank; First Guaranty Bank & Trust Co. of Jacksonville; and North Lauderdale-based Security Bank NA.