Politics | 09/15/2008 7:30 am

Wilbur Ross Tells CNBC That 'A Thousand Regional Banks Could Fail,' FDIC Basics For Depositors

By The Staff at wowOwow.com

In an exclusive interview, Wilbur Ross tells CNBC that "possibly a thousand banks will close." Ross, the founder of private equity firm WL Ross & Company, is a billionaire investor who specializes in turning around underperforming companies. He is a respected commentator and prognosticator on financial matters.

Responding to the dramatic turn of events on Wall Street wherein 150+-year-old Lehman Brothers is preparing for bankruptcy, Merrill Lynch is bought by Bank of America in a forced marriage orchestrated by the Federal Reserve and insurance giant AIG is seeking capital, Ross sees the turmoil creeping into the commercial banking sector as the real estate and credit crisis continues to unwind.

While Ross sees investment opportunities for "vulture capitalists" in the coming banking carnage, for individual account holders at these regional banks, it is important that they take time to review where their money is and that all of their accounts fall under FDIC protection. The FDIC has online information to help depositors make sure their accounts are in FDIC-protected institutions and instruments and that they each fall under the $100,000 limit.

See the entire interview and video by clicking here.

FDIC Insurance Basics can be found by clicking here.

Read more about: Banking, CNBC, Credit Crisis, FDIC Basics, Financial, News, Wall Street, Wilbur Ross

206 Reader Comments (so far…) Sign In or Register to comment

Four more years! Four more years! Four more years! C’mon reps, why aren’t you in this thread or any of the others that show what McBushonomics really do for this country chanting your mantra.

By Sherrie Crews on 09/15/2008 8:31 am

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Let’s not forget the Congressmen! Congressmen BLOWVIATT demands no more sex in the Oval Office, no more subterfuge, no more shiftiness, no more half-truths, no more spins, no more taradiddles, and no more whoppers! And after these mantras are promised and promised again and again we seem to encounter the SAME again and again. Maybe–––––just maybe THIS time we can turn the corner, just a little to the left, and head in the right direction.

By phyllis Doyle Pepe on 09/15/2008 12:44 pm

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Hey, I have no problem with sex in the Oval Office, as long as it’s not with oil lobbyists and doesn’t interfere with getting the important jobs done!

By DeBúrca obj on 09/15/2008 2:47 pm

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Well Sherrie, here’s a republican on this thread inserting a little fact into your hyperbole. Two of Obama’a top economic advisors are former Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac CEO’s. Looks like these companies went under while dems watched over them.

By eleanor roche on 09/15/2008 2:10 pm

And, Phil Gramm is McCain’s main economic advisor and one of the contributing reasons we are in this mess. http://losangeles.injuryboard.com/miscellaneous/the-subprime-mess-and-ph…

By Diana T on 09/15/2008 8:54 pm

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Phil Gramm, the man who called us a nation of whiners. http://www.gather.com/viewArticle.jsp?articleId=281474977373777

By Diana T on 09/15/2008 9:16 pm

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Gramm was right, we are a nation of whiners, and McCain should have backed him up.

By eleanor roche on 09/15/2008 10:09 pm

Phil Gramm has rarley been right since he and Wendy were bought and sold my Enron—he should be in jail and so should she.

By Frank Peterson on 09/16/2008 1:45 am

Oh is that Phil of Enron fame???

By Frank Peterson on 09/15/2008 9:54 pm

Frank, That be the one. You remember the business with Mrs. Gramm on the board of Enron. Talk about conflict of interest through all of that debacle, and I am always surprised that he didn’t end up in the slammer. Good friends in high places?

By Diana T on 09/15/2008 11:47 pm

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Eleanor: the reason those two got into trouble along with Lehman and Merrill is Reagonomics and deregulation-. Nothing more, nothing less.

By Frank Peterson on 09/15/2008 9:51 pm

Honestly Frank, do you even understand the mortgage lending crisis? It has nothing to do with “Reaganomics”. It has to do with providing conditions for people who shouldn’t be allowed to borrow money and lending money to people that were never going to be in a position to repay it.

By eleanor roche on 09/15/2008 10:15 pm

That’s simplistic Eleanor—the problem is just not mortgages. it’s the entire credit bubble of which mortgages are only a part of it. and these companies are not regulated and that IS a major problem.

By Frank Peterson on 09/16/2008 1:29 am

Frank, Frannie Mae and Freddie Mac went down for the very reason I stated. They gave out loans to people who could not afford them and/or who were never going to pay them back—that may be “simplistic” in your view, but that is what happened. By providing conditons for people who traditionally were not eligible for home loans, they compromised the industry. Lehman and Merill bought up some of these sub-prime notes which now are worthless, leading to their demise. Lenders were giving out money all over the place, putting people in the housing market who wouldn’t have normally been there since they were now able to get a loan, this also artificially inflated housing prices.

By eleanor roche on 09/17/2008 4:02 pm