Federal banking regulators have hit the small First Commercial Bank of Tampa Bay with a cease-and-desist order demanding, among other things, that the bank improve its finances.
In an order issued last month, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. says it found reason to believe First Commercial Bank had engaged in "unsafe or unsound banking practices and had committed violations of law and/or regulations."
The order does not close the bank but outlines the FDIC's demands that the bank stop operating with a large volume of poor-quality loans and lax underwriting standards. The federal agency also advises the bank on how to appoint qualified management and to increase participation of its board of directors.
Finally, the agency demands that First Commercial Bank improve its finances by reducing its "substandard" asset balance from about $19.1 million to $9.5 million within 720 days; denying additional credit to any existing customers who already have troubled loans with the bank; and reviewing its liquid assets on a daily basis to make sure it can meet its cash needs.
First Commercial Bank is based at 4600 W. Kennedy Blvd. in Tampa and operates a branch on Gandy Boulevard in Tampa. It had total assets of about $157 million as of March 31, according to the FDIC.
A private bank rating company, BauerFinancial, assigned the bank a rating of one star on a scale of zero to five stars. A rating of one star means a bank is "troubled," according to BauerFinancial's rating scale.
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