The Hartford and Lincoln National Corp. have a new member in their club of insurers that have converted to banking companies to be eligible for a piece of the $700 billion bailout pot.
The Federal Reserve today approved Protective Life Corp., an insurance and financial services firm, as a bank holding company.
The Office of Thrift Supervision, a Treasury Department agency, said last week it approved applications from Hartford Financial Services Group Inc. and Lincoln National to acquire existing savings and loans and become thrift holding companies. Insurance companies that own thrifts, which are federally regulated, are eligible to apply for a piece of the $700 billion bailout pot.
The change gives Protective Life assess to the Fed’s emergency lending program if it needed a quick source of cash.
Protective Life, which has $41.1 billion in assets, became a bank holding company through the acquisition of Florida-based Bonifay Holding Co. Inc., and its Bank of Bonifay subsidiary. With $220 million in assets, Bonifay is the 143rd largest banking institution in Florida, the Fed said. (AP)
