Joe Adler

WASHINGTON — Under pressure from lawmakers not to charge banks another special assessment, Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair said the agency would consider other alternatives — including some obscure ones — before it decides to act.

The failures of $2.7 billion-asset Irwin Union Bank and Trust Co., of Columbus, Ind., and $493 million-asset Irwin Union Bank, of Louisville, Ken., were estimated to cost the Deposit Insurance Fund a total of $850 million.

Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Chairman Sheila Bair signaled Friday the agency is considering multiple options for stabilizing the Deposit Insurance Fund, including borrowing from the Treasury Department.

Nearly a year after policymakers first started talking about ways to get toxic assets off bank balance sheets, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. announced Wednesday that it has sealed a deal with a Texas mortgage investment firm.

In a letter to FDIC Chairman Sheila Bair, the Michigan Democrat said the agency should consider using its recently enlarged credit line with the Treasury Department rather than imposing more costs on community banks that did not cause the crisis.

The FDIC's watchdog said that while the agency provided regular supervision of the institutions, its actions could have been timelier to address problems.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. urged institutions that split the costs of failed banks with the agency to cut some of their new borrowers a break.

Time ran out on Corus Bank late Friday as regulators closed the once-high-flying Chicago condominium lender and sold its operations to another institution.

WASHINGTON — Rumors that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is close to broke — which have increasingly gained traction as the level of federal reserves has declined — appear greatly exaggerated.

In the most prominent sign yet that policymakers are creating an exit strategy for government intervention in the banking business, the FDIC has set in motion the end of its debt guarantee plan.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. is expected today to discuss the status of its nearly yearlong program to guarantee bank liquidity destabilized by the crisis.

WASHINGTON — In the week after the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. eased its stringent private-equity proposal, firms appear wary but ready to bid on failed banks again.

Government watchdogs have issued two more reports criticizing federal banking regulators' oversight of failed banks.

A Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. release Monday featured tips for consumers on navigating new credit card and mortgage rules, and how best to utilize bank reward programs.

WASHINGTON — Three banks totaling $1.9 billion in assets failed late Friday, bringing the year's closure total to 84.

WASHINGTON — Burned by failures of newly chartered banks, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. extended on Friday the period of time a new institution is classified as "de novo" and subjected them to tougher supervisory requirements.

Despite widespread optimism about the broader economy, a regulatory report out Thursday showed that the banking industry remains deep in crisis.

The number of problem banks jumped by 36% in the second quarter, hitting 416, while assets held by such banks also saw a whopping increase, rising 36% to $300 billion, the FDIC said Thursday.

After dialing back some of its most onerous requirements, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. board issued final guidelines Wednesday dictating restrictions on private-equity investors that buy failing banks.

The FDIC is expected to dilute its policy on private-equity bank investments significantly, but sources said exact details remained in flux ahead of a scheduled board meeting this afternoon.