Is your money safe in local banks? Experts say yes

LOUISVILLE, Ky. (WAVE) -The failure of Silicon Valley Bank in California sparked nervousness on Wall Street, but experts said Louisville area banks should be fine.

More importantly, area depositors should relax.

“I mean honestly,” Bellarmine University Associate Professor of Finance, Brad Stevenson said, “If you have less than $250,000 in a bank, you don’t have to ask any questions, your money is insured.”

Stevenson pointed out that the phrase “protected by the FDIC” is important to remember at times like this.

The federal government guarantees a deposit of up to $250,000.

”If you do happen to be an individual with more than $250,000 in deposit,” Stevenson said, “I would just make sure they are in different accounts, maybe even different banks where you make sure you take advantage of the insurance, wherever your money is.”

Any time a bank fails, it is natural to wonder, ‘is my money safe?’

President Biden did his part to settle nerves on Monday, reassuring the public.

”Americans can have confidence that the banking system is safe,” Biden said. “And deposits will be there when you need them.”

The stock market reacted positively to the comments. And again, local experts agree that what happened in California is not a sign of things to come.

”This is not a systemic bank failure like we shot in 2008 which was tied to mortgage backing assets,” UofL Economic Department Chair Jose Fernandez said. “This is instead the inability for a bank to liquidate because they have accounts much greater than $250,000 FDIC insured.”

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