Bad loans, losses mount at banks with more expected

The results are in, and it was officially another ugly year for St. Louis banks, with bad loans and losses piling up again in the fourth quarter.

Bad loans at the 78 St. Louis area commercial banks headquartered in and around St. Louis totaled more than $1.27 billion for the year ended Dec. 31, up from $1.22 billion through the third quarter, and $736 million in the fourth quarter of 2008, according to figures compiled by the Federal Reserve Bank of St. Louis.

Losses for the same banks totaled $412.7 million for 2009, far worse than the $162.7 million lost in 2008.

“The losses continue, and while they are disappointing, they are not unexpected,” said Julie Stackhouse, senior vice president of the Bank Supervision & Regulation Division of the St. Louis Fed. “Expect to see continuing disappointing results through 2010.”