It was a rough year for banks, according to the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp or FDIC. More banks failed during 2010 in the US than any year since 1992. That’s quite startling when you consider that 1992 was the height of the savings-and-loan crisis.Statistics show that there were 157 bank failures in 2010, compared to 140 in 2009. Just four years ago there were no bank failures. Officials hope this is the worst year for bank failures. “Going forward, the FDIC looks to see fewer failures,” agency spokesman Greg Hernandez told the Washington Post.

And even though the number of bank failures was high in 2010, the FDIC believes there are many more weak banks that could follow. As of this fall there were 860 banks listed as “problem” banks by the FDIC. Typically about one fifth of the banks that make it on to this list end up failing. As a result of these failures the FDIC insurance fund is in the red, but authorities say they’ll have enough money to cover bank failures through 2014. Here are some interesting statistics about the banks that failed in 2010:

• On average the banks that failed in 2010 were much smaller than banks that failed in 2009.
• The assets of the banks that failed in 2010 totaled more than $92 billion. That’s a drop of more than 45% compared to the assets of the banks that failed in 2009.
• In 2009, the assets of failed banks totaled more than $169 billion.
• Roughly half of the 2010 failures involved banks based in California, Florida, Georgia and Illinois.

The FDIC exists to protect bank customers when a bank does fail, making sure they don’t lose money. “These are very small institutions,” Gary B. Townsend, president of Hill-Townsend Capital, told the Washington Post. “The total assets that they represent is insignificant compared to the financial system as a whole. It’s quite manageable.” And according to the Washington Post, just because banks are failing, that doesn’t mean the economy isn’t improving. As an indicator, failing banks are typically well behind economic trouble.

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