Over the weekend there was some pretty disturbing news in the Banking/Financial industry. A very large bank, Indy Mac was deemed undercapitalized which resulted in the FDIC coming in to take over the bank. Many of us are of the mindset, "So what, my money is in ABC Bank." Well, think about it the way I do. If one is deemed insolvent and must be taken over, there may be consumer/depositor sentiment that causes a run on the deposits of highly capitalized banks. You may look at face value in NY and say, ABC Bank is secure. Riddle me this, if there are 50 states in the USA and the run on Indy Mac took place 3,000 miles away, why were the ramifications felt here in NY on Wall Street? Think big picture ladies and gents. Remember the S & L debacle of 20 years ago? Not all S & L's were insolvent and entangled in shady business deals, offshore shelters or off balance sheet agreements. Most were doing rather well financially, but UH-OH, one went under and the financial stampede/domino effect began. Everyone started to demand that their money be forked over, no matter the relative strength of the institution. (All of this is just my opinion, but I am opinionated after all…) If the same occurs at more of our financial institutions, where will YOUR financial balance be? Will you be smart enough to unravel the FDIC rules on deposit insurance? Have you sheltered your accounts with 100K thresholds? Are you insured supplementally by the financial institutions brokerage agreements? Don't get me wrong, I'm just throwing the information out into the arena.
What I WILL do however, is put this information in your hands. If you need an attorney for on-going consultation, assistance in restructuring your accounts, explanation of the FDIC insurance law, information on how brokerage contracts provide additional protection, where to get your brokerage contracts and account contracts interpreted, take a look at this service Prepaid Legal Services Inc.
In order to be totally transparent, I am a member of this service and I am also an associate that markets this protection. I am only placing the information in your hands, what you do with it is totally up to you and your personal situation. However, I would like to leave you with this thought:
You have medical insurance IN CASE you are taken to the hospital
You have auto insurance IN CASE you have an accident
You have life insurance IN CASE you pass away
You have dental insurance IN CASE you have a cavity
WHAT DO YOU HAVE TO COVER YOUR LEGAL ISSUES like FDIC Insurance and what it covers?
Take Care and Be Safe
William D. Calloway Jr., CITRMS