State banking officials, escorted by Florida Highway Patrol troopers, arrived at local branches of Wakulla Bank at closing time Friday to seize control of the financial institution.
Signs of trouble first arose in August 2009 when the Florida Office of Financial Regulation issued a cease and desist order to Wakulla Bank citing "unsafe and unsound" practices. A deadline was set to correct the problems, but the issues were apparently not resolved to the state’s satisfaction, leading to the closure on Friday.
According to a press release from the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), to protect the depositors, the FDIC entered into a purchase and assumption agreement with Centennial Bank of Conway, Arkansas, to assume all of the deposits of Wakulla Bank.
For more details, please see this week's print edition.
