US sees nine bank collapses

Rattled by the financial meltdown,a whopping 140 banks failed last year 8212; the maximum in 18 years.

Columbia River Bank,Evergreen Bank,Charter Bank,Bank of Leeton and Premier American Bank were shut down on January 22,according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.

The failure of the five entities would cost the FDIC,which insures deposits at over 8,000 American banks,as much as USD 531.7 million.

Going by the official data,as many as 164 banks have closed down,since the bankruptcy of Wall Street major Lehman Brothers in September 2008.