First Georgia Banking Company — which has branches in Jackson and Banks counties — has been taken over by the Georgia Department of Banking and Finance, according to a press release.
The Superior Court of Heard County issued an order on Friday afternoon appointing the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as receiver of the bank effective upon the department taking possession of First Georgia Banking Company.
The bank opened in 2003 and has 10 full-service branches, including those in Jefferson and Homer, according to its website.
CertusBank, National Association of Easley, S.C., has acquired First Georgia Banking Company through an agreement with the FDIC.
Along with First Georgia, regulators also took over Atlantic Southern Bank of Macon on Friday. The banks are the 11th and 12th banks in the state to be closed by regulators this year.
All deposit accounts of First Georgia Banking Company have been transferred to CertusBank and will be available immediately, according to a press release.
Depositors will be able to access their accounts at the former main office and branch locations of First Georgia Banking Company during regular business hours. Customers of both banks should continue to use their existing branches until CertusBank can fully integrate the deposit records of First Georgia Banking Company.
Additionally, the former depositors of First Georgia Banking Company can continue to access their accounts through automated teller machine transactions, checks and debit transactions.
All deposits will be transferred to CertusBank and, therefore, it is not anticipated that there will be any loss exposure to former First Georgia Banking Company depositors that have deposits exceeding the FDIC Deposit Insurance amounts.
The state department’s commissioner, Robert M. Braswell, reminds depositors that deposits of all Georgia banks are insured by the FDIC up to $250,000. Special rules are in place for accounts held in trust status and joint accounts that may further expand deposit insurance coverage.
Additional information on FDIC Deposit Insurance may be found at www.fdic.gov.
The FDIC has established a website and a toll-free phone number to answer questions from depositors, creditors and other interested parties regarding the receivership of First Georgia Banking Company.
Please refer to the FDIC’s website for further information regarding the details of the purchase and assumption transaction. The website is http://www.fdic.gov/bank/individual/failed/fgbc.html and the toll-free phone number is 1-800-823-5017. The phone number is operational on Saturday, from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m., on Sunday, from noon to 6 p.m. and thereafter from 8 a.m. to 8 p.m.
I don't expect much next weekend (due to the holiday), so maybe they are doing extra ones tonight.