Summary
FDIC deposit insurance protects your deposits in the event your bank fails or becomes insolvent. Since its inception in 1934, the FDIC has never failed to fully compensate customers of failed banks. In good times, the fund’s balance is comfortably in the black. In bad times, like the Great Financial Crisis of the late 2000s, the balance can go negative.
The number of banks in the U.S. steadily declined during the entire survey period. The FDIC’s DRR target — the ratio at which the deposit insurance fund is considered ‘full’ — is 2%. The closest the reserve ratio came since 2022 was 1.41% in 2019.
The FDIC deposit insurance fund has lost about $73.38 billion since 2002. The highest annual figure was $25.8 billion in — wait for it — 2008. The FDIC’s deposit insurance. fund hasn’t met its target reserve ratio of 2% in more than 20 years.
