Australia's top financial regulators say they are closely monitoring the market ructions caused by the collapse of
July 1892 – Victoria Mutual Building and Investment Society. February 1893 – Federal Bank, and the Queensland Deposit Bank. April/May 1893 – Within seventeen days, three banks collapsed: the Australian Joint Stock Bank, the Commercial Bank of Australia, and the English, Scottish and Australian Chartered Bank.
Three banks in the U.S. (Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank and Silvergate) have collapsed since early March. The collapses of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank are the two biggest bank failures since 2008.
The Australian Prudential Regulation Authority said 575 regional banks closed between mid-2017 and mid-2021.
National Australia Bank (NAB) has ranked first as the safest bank in Australasia and number 16 in the world, the Rankings of the World's 50 Safest Banks report from Global Finance has found.
On 15 September 2008 the investment bank Lehman Brothers collapsed, sending shockwaves through the global financial system and beyond. Visit our timeline to explore the events leading up to Lehman Brothers' failure and what happened in the weeks that followed.
Bear Stearns: Too Big to Fail, Sort Of
Bear Stearns was the first big investment bank to run into trouble during the late-2000s financial crisis. Its troubles came to a head in March 2008, when credit rating agency Moody's downgraded the junky mortgage-backed securities on Bear Stearns' balance sheet.
Washington Mutual still ranks first, with $307 billion in assets under management when it failed in 2008.
When banks fail, the most common outcome is that another bank takes over the assets and your accounts are simply transferred over. If not, the FDIC will pay you out. Funds beyond the protected amount may still be reimbursed, but the FDIC does not guarantee this.
Despite the recent uncertainty, experts don't recommend withdrawing cash from your account. Keeping your money in financial institutions rather than in your home is safer, especially when the amount is insured. “It's not a time to pull your money out of the bank,” Silver said.
A poll of bank customers has found AMP, Bank of China and Westpac are among Australia's least-trusted banks while Bendigo Bank, ING and RACQ Bank are some of the most trusted.
It's important to remember though, that while there's minimal risk of any Australian banks collapsing, it's never impossible.
Are my savings safe? Mr Boey says while there's minimal risk of any Australian banks collapsing, savings up to a certain point are protected. Deposits up to $250,000 are protected by a government-backed safety net called the Financial Claims Scheme.
There are 3 bank failures in 2023. See detailed descriptions below.
Two regional US banks, California-based Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and New York's Signature Bank, have collapsed under the weight of heavy losses on their bond portfolios and a massive run on deposits.
The biggest failures were not banks in the traditional Main Street sense but investment banks that catered to institutional investors. These notably included Lehman Brothers and Bear Stearns. Lehman Brothers was denied a government bailout and shut its doors.
Financial stresses peaked following the failure of the US financial firm Lehman Brothers in September 2008. Together with the failure or near failure of a range of other financial firms around that time, this triggered a panic in financial markets globally.
While banks are insured by the FDIC, credit unions are insured by the NCUA. "Whether at a bank or a credit union, your money is safe. There's no need to worry about the safety or access to your money," McBride said.
So, if your bank branch closes, you have options like banking online, switching banks or staying with your existing bank at a branch across town. In addition, you may want to consider setting up bank account alerts that can monitor your checking and savings accounts for fraud and track your spending.
These alternative models include prepaid cards, non-bank lending, and leveraging existing networks like mobile telephony to transfer value. The ubiquity of smartphones and digital transactions has widened and broadened the competitive playing field of companies that are capable of providing financial services.