Random: Ignorant People Continue To Be... Ignorant

Here I am reading the L.A. Times story this morning...

Police show up at IndyMac Branches in Encino, Northridge as waiting customers clash

I am not surprise that people are taking money out from IndyMac, but here is the question... why?

IndyMac has been taken over by the federal government already. FDIC insured their money up to $100,000. If they wanted to withdraw their money, they should have done so before the OTS has taken over IndyMac, especially those who had over $100K. IndyMac FSB is now a federal bank, in another word a government bank.

These withdraws are IMHO pointless. Their money will not disappear, since it is backed by the federal goverment. If US government can not give you your money, then expect a world economic crisis pretty soon... like tomorrow soon.

Beside the needless shouting and fighting to get their money out of IndyMac, another thing I am worrying about is their financial plans. Are they going to stash $10K to $100K in their homes? Are you putting it in Washington Mutual (another bank that might head south)? If so, they are just simply repeating the same mistake. Are they going to invest? Although, any fool can see that this is not the time. I would not invest in anything at this time unless I understand the company wholly, its goal, its practice, its potential, and its goal.

Financial Tip: Safe & Sound Bank

If you haven't heard it by now, IndyMac Bank has been closed by Office of Thrift Supervision. On their website, www.indymacbank.com, you will see the FDIC information. If you are one of the unlucky people who still have some money in IndyMac, you will be glad to hear that IndyMac is FDIC insured. FDIC will go through the list of customers, and return the insured money. The insurance is limited to $100,000 per person per bank: checking accounts, saving accounts, and CDs (Certificates of Deposit).

For those who keep up with economy news, the closing of IndyMac on Friday is not a surprise. Their shares headed southward since mid-2007, and dipped below $1.00 for many weeks now. For many savvy investors and knowledgeable customers, they probably transfer their money from IndyMac to another bank already. But for most IndyMac customers, the shutdown is a wake up call. Who would have figure that a well known bank would close down? Well, they just did. Now you know. Let this be a lesson. Nothing is fool-proof.

You might wonder, how do you find out if your bank would go belly up like IndyMac? You could keep up with the daily news about your bank on Yahoo! Finance. It is probably the safest bet. However, it can be difficult to understand the news if you can not understand all the jargons.

Luckily, there is an easier way to determine how well your bank is doing. Just simply look for the Safe & Sound rating for your bank from Bankrate.com. If your bank has three stars or more, then it is not going to go belly up any time soon. But if your bank has a star or two, consider transferring part of your money to a more secure bank. However, if you decided to stay with bank, keep your deposit below $100,000 for FDIC insured accounts, and move out uninsured investments.


* BankRate.com - Safe & Sound rating
* Yahoo! Finance