The Wall Street Journal, April 26, 2024, Regulators Seize Troubled Philadelphia Bank, Republic First
Republic First faced some of the same problems as the three regional banks that failed last year: paper losses on bonds that lost value as interest rates rose, and high proportions of uninsured deposits that can quickly flee.
In the first quarter, Lancaster, Penn.-based Fulton had about $28 billion in assets and around 200 locations throughout Pennsylvania, Delaware, Maryland, New Jersey and Virginia. A deal with the much smaller Republic First should allow it to scale up some without the increased regulatory scrutiny that comes when banks have more than $50 billion in assets.
