BB&T Corp. and SunTrust Banks Inc., regional lenders focused on the Southeast, boosted the number of loans they modified for borrowers who cannot pay as the firms battled to cut defaults in Florida and Georgia.
BB&T's troubled debt restructurings had risen to about $500 million as of Dec. 31, up from $140 million on Sept. 30, Chief Financial Officer Daryl Bible said.
SunTrust reported $2.55 billion in troubled debt restructurings, a 26 percent increase.
The Obama administration has encouraged banks to modify loans and head off foreclosures that would put people out of their homes. BB&T and SunTrust said Florida remains the biggest source of unpaid loans.
Most of BB&T's debt restructuring deals involved commercial real estate customers, including developers, and 97 percent of SunTrust's were for residential borrowers, the banks said.
BB&T, based in Winston-Salem, N.C., said 88 percent of its customers with restructured debt are paying interest, compared with 70 percent at Atlanta-based SunTrust.
Both banks reported fourth-quarter results that topped expectations of analysts surveyed by Bloomberg, with loan losses less than predicted.
BB&T's net income fell 37 percent to $194 million, or 27 cents a share, the Winston-Salem-based company said Friday in a written announcement.
SunTrust's loss narrowed to $248.1 million, or 64 cents a share, from $347.6 million.
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