Wilbur Ross: Possibly a Thousand Banks Will Close
By CNBC.com | 15 Sep 2008 | 02:12 AM ET
In an exclusive interview with CNBC.com, Wilbur Ross, chairman and CEO of WL Ross & Co., says he sees possibly as many as a thousand bank closures in the coming months. And this will create opportunities for investors.
“I do think a lot of the regional ones will (close), just as they did in the last savings and loan crisis in the 1990s,” Ross said.
Ross says he will be looking to pick up smaller distressed institutions. “There will be opportunities, but we will need federal assistance in them [emphasis mine], because what we’re mainly looking for is stable sources of deposits, not so much the loan portfolio.”