Affinity Bank, Ventura, California

In debt to the US Treasury itself, the FDIC managed to close Affinity Bank, Ventura, California, making it the 84th institution of 2009, and the ninth in California.

Affinity Bank, Ventura, California, was closed today by the California Department of Financial Institutions, which appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as receiver. To protect the depositors, the FDIC entered into a purchase and assumption agreement with Pacific Western Bank, San Diego, California, to assume all of the deposits of Affinity Bank.

Affinity Bank had ten branches. The former Affinity Bank branches located in San Francisco and San Mateo will reopen starting tomorrow and the remaining branches will reopen on Monday as branches of Pacific Western Bank. Depositors of Affinity Bank will automatically become depositors of Pacific Western Bank. Depositors will continue to be insured by the FDIC, so there is no need for customers to change their banking relationship to retain their deposit insurance coverage. Customers should continue to use their existing branches until Pacific Western Bank can fully integrate the deposit records of Affinity Bank.

This evening and over the weekend, depositors of Affinity Bank can access their money by writing checks or using ATM or debit cards. Checks drawn on the bank will continue to be processed. Loan customers should continue to make their payments as usual.

As of July 10, 2009, Affinity Bank had total assets of $1 billion and total deposits of approximately $922 million. In addition to assuming all of the deposits of the failed bank, Pacific Western Bank agreed to purchase essentially all of the assets.

The FDIC and Pacific Western Bank entered into a loss-share transaction on approximately $934 million of Affinity Bank’s assets. Pacific Western Bank will share in the losses on the asset pools covered under the loss-share agreement. The loss-sharing arrangement is projected to maximize returns on the assets covered by keeping them in the private sector. The agreement also is expected to minimize disruptions for loan customers.

Customers who have questions about today’s transaction can call the FDIC toll-free at 1-800-640-2631. The phone number will be operational this evening until 9:00 p.m., Pacific Daylight Time (PDT); on Saturday from 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., PDT; on Sunday from noon to 6:00 p.m., PDT; and thereafter from 8:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m., PDT.

If you should have any further questions, visit the FDIC’s Web page for Affinity Bank.

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