Determine Your
Bank Rating
There’s been a lot of news
recently about the financial strength of banking institutions, including the bank
rating. The mortgage crisis has left a far reaching trail of damage that has affected not only the
real estate industry, but the banking industry as well.
So how do you know how safe your bank really
is?
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
(FDIC) is a great source of information on the banking industry for consumers. There’s news about failed
banks, as well as articles on what you need to know about your bank accounts and whether they’re fully insured
in the unlikely event your bank fails.
While the majority of banks are weathering the storm in fine shape, it never hurts
to be educated on the banking industry, and how to protect your assets.
While the FDIC does not release their
internal bank strength rating report, there are private companies that do assemble their own
ratings based on their own specific criteria. Reports are often offered online, and many offer paper reports as
well as reports on CD-ROM. Many of these services are subscription based. The ratings generally cover banks,
bank holding companies, savings & loans and savings banks.
Institutions are generally assigned some sort of
“letter” grade or numerical ranking meant to give an indication of the safety or soundness of the
institution.
Each company offering bank
rating reports uses their own proprietary (used only by that specific company) formula and
criteria which is then applied to various banking data. This gives the rating result.
Generally, the formulas used are based on some
sort of variation of CAMELS factors. CAMELS stands for Capital, Asset Quality,
Management, Earnings, Liquidity and Sensitivity to market risk.
The following are some private companies
offering bank strength rating information;
A.M. Best Company
Website: http://www3.ambest.com/banks/default.asp
Oldwick, New Jersey 08858-0700
Phone: (908) 439-2200 x5633
Fax: (908) 439-2237
e-mail: banking.analysis@ambest.com
Bankrate,
Inc.
Website: http://www.bankrate.com/
11760 US Highway One
North Palm Beach, FL 33408
(561) 630-2400
e-mail: customerservice@bankrate.com
BauerFinancial, Inc.
Website: http://www.bauerfinancial.com/
P.O. Box 143520
Penthouse 1-A, Gables International Plaza
2655 LeJeune Road
Coral Gables, Florida 33134
Phone: (800) 388-6686
Fax: (800) 230-9569
e-mail: customerservice@bauerfinancial.com
Creative Investment
Research, Inc.
Website: http://www.creativeinvest.com/
P.O. Box 55793
Washington, DC 20040-5793
Phone: (866) 867-3795
Fax: (866) 867-3795
e-mail: info@creativeinvest.com
FIS -
Financial Information Systems, LLC
Website: www.FEDFIS.com
250 West Southlake Blvd
Suite 204
Southlake, Texas 76092
Phone 512-858-0164 or 877-410-2424
Email www.info@fedfis.com
IDC Financial
Publishing
Website: http://www.idcfp.com
P.O. Box 140
700 Walnut Ridge Drive
Suite 201
Hartland, Wisconsin, 53029
Phone: (800) 525-5457
Fax: (262) 367-6497
email: idcfp@execpc.com
Institutional Risk Analytics
Website: http://www.institutionalriskanalytics.com
14352 Yukon Avenue
Hawthorne, California 90250
Phone: (310) 676-3300
Fax: (310) 943-1570
e-mail: info@institutionalriskanalytics.com
LACE
Financial Corp.
Website: http://www.lacefinancial.com/
118 North Court Street
Frederick, Maryland, 21701
Phone: (301) 662-1011
Fax: (301) 662-1458
Veribanc
Website: http://www.veribanc.com
P.O. Box 1610
One Social Street
Woonsocket, Rhode Island 02895
Phone: (800) 837-4226
email: service@veribanc.com
Weiss
Ratings Inc.
Website: http://www.weissratings.com
4176 Burns Road
Palm Beach Gardens, Florida 33410
Phone: (800) 289-9222
Fax: (561) 625-6685
Contact each company to get
detailed information on the products they offer, frequency of publication and cost, the types of institutions
rated, their specific rating method, and other products that they offer.
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