Seven Banks Fail Friday

WASHINGTON (TheStreet) -- State and federal regulators closed seven community banks in five states Friday, bringing the total number of failed U.S. banks and thrifts this year to 106.

All seven institutions had been assigned E-minus (very weak) financial strength ratings by TheStreet.com ratings, and all seven were included in TheStreet.com's list of undercapitalized banks and thrifts, based on second-quarter data.

The Office of Thrift Supervision closed Partners Bank of Naples, Fla. and appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. receiver. The FDIC arranged for Stonegate Bank(SGBK Quote) of Fort Lauderdale, Fla. to assume all of the failed institution's $65 million in deposits and all of its $65 million in assets. Partners Bank's two offices were scheduled to reopen Monday as Stonegate branches. The FDIC estimated the cost to its insurance fund would be $28.6 million.

Georgia regulators took over American United Bank of Lawrenceville, Ga. The FDIC was appointed receiver and sold all of the failed bank's deposits (totaling $101 million) and assets to Ameris Bank of Moultrie, Ga., a subsidiary of Ameris Bancorp(ABCB Quote). American United's office was set to reopen Monday as an Ameris branch. The FDIC agreed to share in losses on $92 million of the $111 million in total assets Ameris acquired from the failed institution and estimated the loss to the agency's insurance fund would be $44 million.

The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency closed Flagship National Bank of Bradenton, Fla. As is always the case in domestic bank failures, the FDIC was appointed receiver, after which the agency arranged for First Federal Bank of Florida of Lake City, Fla., to take over the failed bank's deposits, which totaled $175 million, along with assets totaling $190 million. Flagship's four branches were to reopen as First Federal branches Monday. The FDIC agreed to share in losses on $130 million of the assets acquired by First Federal and estimated the cost to its insurance fund would be $59 million.