Safest Banks

How to Find the Safest Banks for Your Money

Some people only want to work with the safest banks. Even with FDIC insurance, bank failures can be a hassle. By sticking to the safest banks, you reduce the likelihood of any headaches, delays, or name changes on your statements. How do you figure out which banks are the safest banks?

• What Happens in a Bank Failure?

Government Insurance

A key factor in choosing banks is FDIC insurance. The safest banks are FDIC insured, meaning the US government will guarantee a minimum level of protection on your deposits. For credit unions, the equivalent is the NCUSIF.

• How FDIC Insurance Works
• How NCUSIF Insurance Works

After you make sure your deposits are insured, you can try to improve your chances of using the safest banks by using rating services. Rating services can’t guarantee that you’ll find the safest banks, but they’re better than nothing.

Bankrate Safe and Sound Ratings

Bankrate.com has a rating system called the Safe and Sound rating to identify the safest banks. This is a star based system, where the safest banks hold a 5 star rating. Most banks have a 3 or 4 star rating. You can find out more at Bankrate.com.

Texas Ratio

The Texas Ratio is a way of measuring how risky a bank is. It looks at how likely bad loans are to drag the bank down. The safest banks have a Texas Ratio well below 100% (or 1:1). They are better able to absorb losses on defaulted loans.

• How the Texas Ratio Works

BauerFinancial

BauerFinancial is another service with an easy to use star system. The safest banks are 5 star rated. BauerFinancial includes ratings on credit unions, and you can search by typing in the name of your financial institution. Find out more at BauerFinancial.com.

Too Big to Fail

Some people believe in the concept of ‘too big to fail’. In other words, they believe that the safest banks are the largest banks with tentacles reaching into many parts of the economy. The idea is that governments will prop up these banks and prevent them from failing.

In an effort to compete with the ‘too big to fail’ banks, smaller banks have gotten creative. For example, the CDARS program allows CD investors to make large deposits (above FDIC limits) at a smaller institution and still get full FDIC coverage.

• CDARS - Maximizing FDIC Coverage

Keep Your Ears Open

You can also get a feel for bank strength by watching the news. The safest banks may win praise at a time when weaker banks are in trouble. If your bank keeps showing up in the headlines as a soon-to-fail bank, you'll know about it ahead of time. Of course, there may be false rumors and panics, so you'll have to evaluate your sources.