TARP Capital Purchases Spike Since Last Week

The U.S. Treasury Department purchased $1.45 billion in preferred stock from 19 banks and financial institutions in states across the country Friday. According to data released Monday by the Treasury, the weekly injections through the Capital Purchase Program (CPP) increased five-fold over the previous week’s $284.7 million. The substantial increase in capital funds distributed was driven by a $1.22 billion stock purchase from Discover Financial Services (DFS). Ohio-based First Place Financial Corp. (FPFC) came in second behind Discover as the largest capital injection Friday, taking $72.9 million. Illinois-based firms received the most capital, with Caitlin-based Butler Point, Inc.‘s $607,000 joining Riverwoods-based Discover’s capital injections. The first Washington, D.C.-based firm to receive TARP funds, IBW Financial Corp., received $6 million. The smallest capital injection of the day — $425,000 — went to Haviland, Kan.-based Haviland Bancshares Inc. Friday’s capital injections consequentially showed a lopsided distribution of daily funds. According to the Treasury’s data, 92 percent of daily funds went to five public institutions and only 8 percent of daily funds went to 14 private institutions on Friday. Even taking into account Discover’s substantial capital infusion, the distribution seems grossly uneven after CPP funds that on March 6 were split relatively evenly between publicly traded firms — 45 percent — and privately held firms — 55 percent. All told, the Treasury has distributed — and promised — $328.28 billion through its various TARP programs, including the CPP, the Targeted Investment Program, the Systemically Significant Failing Institutions program, the Asset Guarantee Program and the TALF. Write to Diana Golobay at [email protected]. Disclosure: The author held no relevant investment positions when this story was published. Indirect holdings may exist via mutual fund investments. HW reporters and writers follow a strict disclosure policy, the first in the mortgage trade.