Closed Friday, October 31, 2008 · Bradenton, Manatee County, Florida
Freedom Bank
Freedom Bank failed three years after it opened in 2005. In the three years to the fourth quarter of 2007, its assets grew 950%. It lost money in every one of the four reporting years on file before it closed.
On the books, 2005 to 2008
Total assets peaked at $292 million and were 7% lower at the final report. Equity capital went from 56% of assets in the second quarter of 2005 to 3.7% at the last report. By then 12% of its loans were 90 days or more past due or no longer accruing interest. The deepest annual loss, $18.0 million, was booked in 2008 in only part of the year.* 2008: January to September only, the last report before closing.
Size against the other 2008 failures
Total assets of each 2008 failure, log scale; Freedom Bank in red.
By assets it ranked 15th of the 25 failures in 2008. Within Florida it ranks 53rd by size of the 179 failures recorded since 1934. Across the failures of 2008, the median estimated loss came to 37% of assets. In the size ranking of that year, just above it was Alpha Bank & Trust of Alpharetta, Georgia ($354 million, loss 60% of assets); just below, First Priority Bank of Bradenton, Florida ($259 million, loss 37% of assets). Every 2008 failure in the explorer.
Failures in Florida
It was one of two banks in Florida to fail in 2008. The previous failure there was First Priority Bank of Bradenton, on August 1, 2008. The next was Ocala National Bank of Ocala, on January 30, 2009. Manatee County has 5 failed banks on FDIC record since 1934. The others: The County Bank (1987), First Priority Bank (2008), Flagship National Bank (2009), Horizon Bank (2010).