Shrinking Banks

The last banking crisis wiped out the savings-and-loan institutions. Are community banks in Florida under the same threat today?

Commercial real estate is the bread-and-butter business of community banking in Florida and what happens to that sector will likely determine these lenders' future.

Forced by government regulators to set aside millions of dollars for potential loan losses on commercial real estate, the 74 banks headquartered on the Gulf Coast from Tampa to Naples lost a total of $197 million in the quarter of this year, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.