Customers are moving their money to safer banks in the United States.

People have trusted banks for centuries. And barring a catastrophe, they consider bank deposits the best way to store their money.

However, there are some words that we have all heardcuchave we ever had and that give us goosebumps: bankruptcy, fail, collapse... Several terms for a critical situation in which a bank fails to fulfill its role as guarantor and puts its clients' money at risk.

In recent weeks, the failure of three banks in the United States has triggered no small amount of fear, even generating significant trends in the U.S. financial sector. Primarily, the shifting of capital to less risky banks. And which banks are the safest to keep your savings? Let's take a closer look.

Why did these banks fail in the United States? Why did this bank fail?

SVB's collapse was due to the fall in the value of technology company stocks and the rise in interest rates in the United States. But, to put it more simply, many have explained the current trend toward bankruptcy with the inflation sweeping the country. In other words, these banks reached a point where they couldn't pay their customers, who were withdrawing their deposits one after another. These collapses have therefore generated even more anxiety about the likelihood of a new chain collapse, similar to what happened in 2008.

The worst part is that if everyone rushes to withdraw their money at the same time for fear of not being able to do so later, then the problem worsens and a real crisis ensues. Keep in mind that even though you deposit your money in the bank, that capital doesn't remain static; it's the same money that the bank offers in credit, such as financing, or loans. In other words, there's much more money on a bank's payroll than the actual cash kept in the bank's vaults.

It's easy to imagine what would happen if, out of fear or necessity, all customers came at the same time to withdraw their money. Larger banks almost always have more effective mechanisms to handle such a situation, while smaller or medium-sized banks don't.

Is your money protected in American banks?

Since Silicon Valley Bank went bankrupt, followed by two other mid-sized banks (Signature Bank and Silvergate), several financial institutions have experienced significant losses on the stock market. And many are talking about a domino effect that could drag other banks down with it.

Experts predict these banks could be the next to collapse.

So much so that renowned expert Scott Hamilton, who specializes in financial liquidity and bank management published an article in which he predicted that  Western Alliance Ban CorporationPacific Western Bancorp, and First Republic Bank could be the next banks to fall. The expert's analysis is based on the decline in the stock values ​​of these and other banking institutions. In some cases, significant declines have been reported, such as the 75% loss of Pacific Western Bancorp's assets, estimated at no less than $41 billion.

For the time being, the turbulence has been shaking mid-sized banks, which have consequently seen excess capital. In other words, regular customers have moved to larger or safer banks where the risk of bankruptcy is currently much lower.

Money insured in US banks? Up to what amount?

While experts assure that people don't really have much to lose, as long as their accounts have deposit insurance.

In this case, deposits are insured, which means that even if the bank collapses, the customer can withdraw their money if they wish.

But only a little more than half of savers are in that situation.

According to published by The Economist, “around 40% of deposits, by value, are not insured because they exceed the $250.000 guaranteed by the government.”

And as the financial magazine itself asserts, many are calling on the United States government to increase this cap or even extend the aforementioned insurance to all accounts opened in US banks.

“In 2008, during the global financial crisis, Congress raised the limit from $100.000 to $250.000, where it remains today. That's enough for the vast majority of Americans. But some business accounts exceed that limit, for example, to make monthly salary payments. The same is true for some individuals. Like savers in the 30s, they have reasons to move their funds elsewhere if their bank is faltered,” explains The Economist.

A roof of 250 thousand dollars

Let's try to understand, even if it seems complicated, because your money deserves to be cautious and aware. In other words, even if you are one of those with an insured account, your money will only be protected up to US$250.000. After that, your assets are at risk.

Today, the FDIC, the fund charged with protecting its capital, "has about $130.000 billion, enough to cover just 0,7% of total bank deposits in the United States. In practice, when a bank fails, the FDIC takes over and can reinstate its assets."cup"It would be a good idea to reduce the value of its assets, which would add a cushion to the fund. But even with that, overall coverage would be very costly, perhaps requiring additional financing from the Treasury," the aforementioned article states.

That's what happened in recent days, when US authorities de facto expanded deposit insurance. This was achieved by declaring a "systemic risk exception" for a bank that might fail, so that the Treasury, with the support of the FDIC and the Federal Reserve, would guarantee the safety of its deposits.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen has cautioned that while this has been done with two of the recently failed banks, the Biden administration does not intend to formally increase insurance coverage.

So, “is your money safe in American banks?” asks The Economist.

The safest US banks to keep your money

There's no absolute key to measuring the security a bank can offer. But in addition to the most well-known financial institutions, many experts claim that these banks are capable of handling crises similar to those that have recently led to the collapse of several banks in the United States:

• AgriBank
• CoBank
• AgFirst
• Farm Credit Bank of Texas
• Wells Fargo
• S.Bank
• JP Morgan Chase
• PNC Bank
• Citibank
• Capital One
• M&T Bank Corporation