Six US banks have failed in 2026, one more than in 2023, but their combined assets come to about $1.43 billion against roughly $552.54 billion at the banks that failed in 2023. Regulators had flagged problems at most of these lenders long before they closed, and FDIC data show the broader industry posting stronger profits and a shrinking problem-bank list.
Six US banks have failed in 2026 so far, edging past the five that failed in 2023. Counted by assets, though, the two years aren't close: this year's failures hold about $1.43 billion in combined assets, compared with roughly $552.54 billion at the banks that failed in 2023, according to historical FDIC numbers.
Nano Banc supplies the year's biggest failure
Nano Banc's Sept. 25 closure brought the year's count to six and was the largest failure so far. The Irvine, California, lender reported $736 million in assets, and the FDIC estimated a $114 million cost to its Deposit Insurance Fund.
Sunwest Bank agreed to take over substantially all of Nano's deposits and buy about $476 million of its assets, with the FDIC retaining the rest for disposal. California's Business and Consumer Services Secretary, Rohit Chopra, described repeated violations and earlier action against mismanagement at the bank, along with its large level of uninsured deposits.
Each failure had its own paper trail
The other five failures carry their own regulatory history rather than a shared cause. Illinois regulators said Metropolitan Capital Bank & Trust had impaired capital and unsafe conditions before its Jan. 30 closure with $261.10 million in assets, and Kansas officials described years of financial trouble at Small Business Bank, where continuing operating losses left it critically undercapitalized before its July 17 closure.
Kentland Federal Savings and Loan Association, the smallest standalone bank the FDIC had on record at $3.73 million in assets, closed after the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency found unsafe practices had depleted its assets and earnings, with no reasonable prospect of restoring adequate capital. Tioga-Franklin Savings Bank had an earlier FDIC consent order covering weaknesses in management, capital planning, liquidity, and credit administration before its Aug. 21 closure.
Industry profits climb as the problem list shrinks
Even as failures ticked up, the FDIC's second-quarter results show community banks earning 8.2% more than in the preceding quarter, with industry-wide profit reaching $90.1 billion. The regulator's problem-bank list, which counts banks still operating under supervisory concern, stood at 47 institutions as of June 30, down from 54 in March and 60 at the end of 2025.
That list and the failure count measure different things: one tallies closures over the year, the other snapshots institutions still open. Six lenders couldn't keep going in 2026, but the records behind each closure point to problems specific to that bank rather than a system-wide funding shock.
Source: CryptoSlate
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