NEW YORK: New York Community Bank has agreed to buy a significant chunk of the failed Signature Bank in a $2.7 billion deal, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said late Sunday.
The 40 branches of Signature Bank will become Flagstar Bank, starting Monday. Flagstar is one of New York Community Bank’s subsidiaries. The deal will include the purchase of $38.4 billion in Signature Bank’s assets, a little more than a third of Signature’s total when the bank failed a week ago.
The FDIC said $60 billion in Signature Bank’s loans will remain in receivership and are expected to be sold off in time.
Signature Bank was the second bank to fail in this banking crisis, roughly 48 hours after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank. Signature, based in New York, was a large commercial lender in the tristate area, but had in recent years gotten into cryptocurrencies as a potential growth business.
After Silicon Valley Bank failed, depositors became nervous about Signature Bank’s health due to its high amount of uninsured deposits as well as its exposure to crypto and other tech-focused lending. By the time it was closed by regulators, Signature was the third largest bank failure in US history.
The FDIC says it expects Signature Bank’s failure to cost the deposit insurance fund $2.5 billion, but that figure may change as the regulator sells off assets. The deposit insurance fund is paid for by assessments on banks and taxpayers do not bear the direct cost when a bank fails.
New York Community Bank to buy failed Signature Bank
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New York Community Bank to buy failed Signature Bank
- The 40 branches of Signature Bank will become Flagstar Bank. Flagstar is one of New York Community Bank’s subsidiaries
- Signature Bank was the second bank to fail in this banking crisis, roughly 48 hours after the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank
New ownership rules spark foreign demand for Saudi real estate
RIYADH: Property developers in Saudi Arabia are seeing increased interest from international investors following the Kingdom’s recent amendments to real estate ownership laws, industry figures told Arab News.
Speaking at the Real Estate Future Forum in Riyadh, developers said the new regulations permitting foreign ownership of land are beginning to influence market behavior, including decisions by developers and speculators.
The updated regulatory framework officially came into effect on Jan. 22, enabling non-Saudis to apply for property ownership through the Saudi Arabia Real Estate digital platform.
Under the new rules, foreign individuals, companies, and entities are allowed to own property across the Kingdom, including in major urban centers such as Riyadh and Jeddah. Ownership in Makkah and Madinah, however, remains limited to Saudi companies and Muslim individuals.
Developers say the policy shift is already shaping large-scale projects, including Alma Destination on the Red Sea coast.
The waterfront mixed-use tourism development is opening opportunities for hospitality operators and investors, with plans encompassing residential units, hospitality offerings, marina facilities, and entertainment venues.
Zuhair Bakheet, CEO of Al Thuraya Al Omranya Properties and master developer of Alma Destination, said the project’s location in Jeddah, situated between the holy cities of Makkah and Madinah, enhances its appeal to international buyers.
“If we attract people who would love to have a unit within the Makkah and Madinah region, it’s a good option. If we think of Muslim countries like … Malaysia, Indonesia, Egypt, they would love to have a unit within close proximity of the holy cities,” he said.
Another developer factoring the regulatory change into its strategy is Emaar Economic City, the main developer of King Abdullah Economic City.
Emaar Economic City Chief Investment Officer Ali Al-Khatib told Arab News that the new framework represents a major shift for the sector. “We believe these new regulations for non-Saudi ownership are a significant turning point in the real estate sector in the Kingdom, and specifically for King Abdullah Economic City.
“We’ve already seen interest before the system was launched from last year … we’ve had interests from all around the world from Southeast Asia, from Africa, from Europe, from the West.”
