March 2023
To the valued stakeholders of Citizens Bank:
The recent media coverage of two out-of-state bank failures has many people wondering what condition other banks may be in at this time. I can assure you that Citizens Bank remains a strong and stable financial institution.
A few points I would like to share with you:
- The banks that failed were heavily involved in cryptocurrency and technology start-ups, which made them vulnerable to the swings of those sectors. Citizens Bank does not deal in cryptocurrency and has very little involvement in the tech sector. As a community bank, we are well diversified in the types of industries we serve, which offers us protection from volatility in any one industry.
- We maintain capital well above the level we are required to by our regulators. We like to keep an extra “cushion” so we don’t have issues if the banking industry or the economy hit rough times.
- Citizens Bank is a FDIC-insured bank, meaning our depositors are automatically insured up to the coverage limits established by the FDIC. All FDIC-insured banks are examined regularly, and our last exam took place just two months ago.
- Over the last week, the Federal government has put new protections in place to limit the impact the two bank failures have on the health of the overall banking industry.
As a 130-year-old community bank, Citizens Bank operates much more conservatively than the out-of-state banks that failed. Our bank survived the Great Depression, and more recently, we successfully navigated the Great Recession of 2007-2009 and the pandemic. Times of economic downturns and turmoil are bound to happen, so we focus on keeping your community bank a safe and secure place no matter what headwinds we may all face.
If you have any questions about FDIC insurance and your deposits, I urge you to reach out directly to one of our skilled bankers. They will be happy to take a look at your accounts and suggest ways you can maximize your FDIC coverage.
I thank you for your trust in Citizens Bank. We take that trust to heart in everything we do.
Jeffrey L. Standafer, President & CEO, Citizens Bank