U.S. Closes Two More Banks, Bringing Total to 87 This Year

U.S. regulators closed two more banks on Friday -- one in Utah and another in Nebraska -- bringing the total number this year to 87.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) said the SunFirst Bank of St. George, Utah, has been closed. It said the three branches of SunFirst Bank will reopen as branches of Cache Valley Bank on Saturday.

SunFirst Bank had about $198.1 million in total assets and $169.1 million in total deposits as of Sept. 30.

The FDIC also said that Mid City Bank Inc. in Omaha, Neb., was shuttered, with the deposits being assumed by Purdum State Bank in Purdum, Neb. Purdum State Bank will change its name to Premier Bank on Saturday, when the five Mid City Bank branches will reopen under the new name.

As of Sept. 30, Mid City Bank had about $106.1 million in total assets and $105.5 million in total deposits.

Most of the banks that have failed so far this year each had less than $1 billion in assets, illustrating the problems facing small banks.

Many community banks continue to be hit hard by the sluggish economy and their exposure to the troubled commercial real-estate market.

At the current pace, however, there will be fewer failures this year than last year, when 157 banks were closed.

(Reporting by Christopher Doering; Editing by Richard Chang)