FDIC Insurance Coverage

Nothing's being resolved. The most recent flareup in the European sovereign debt crisis ended with Greece getting enough pocket change to tide it over for a couple of months, while the EU squabbles over the terms of a second Greek bailout. In other words, the can was kicked a short distance down the road, after Greece got a few hamburgers that it promised to pay for on Tuesday. But the prospects of a real solution are as bleak as ever.

The debt ceiling fight in Washington is getting louder and more strident. That could mean both sides are posturing for their supporters and preaching to their respective choirs for a while, before working out a last minute deal. Or else they might be heading for a showdown. The latter would be dumb, seeing as how it would flummox the financial markets. But then again we're talking about politicians, so dumb is s.o.p. The moody intransigence of today's politics makes it harder for politicians to compromise. The one hope we may have is the world's largest collection of hypocrites is in political Washington, and if driven by expediency, they'll readily go back on their words in order to save their glutei maximi.

Meanwhile, back at the ranch, the poor consumer has to figure out how to avoid having his or her own glutei maximi deep fried. The European sovereign debt crisis could trigger a financial crunch like 2008, except maybe worse. If the U.S. defaults on its debt, 2008 will seem like Party Central. When the going gets tough, the prudent make sure their bank accounts are FDIC insured. Here are the basics on coverage.

Each account "owner" gets $250,000 per bank. In other words, all of the owner's accounts are totaled, and up to $250,000 of deposits is protected. So if you have a checking account and a couple of CDs, their balances are aggregated and as much as $250,000 is covered.

Here's the fun part: you can be more than one type of owner, and each owner you become gets $250,000 of coverage. This isn't like the Internet where you might have multiple user names, and you don't need to have dissociative identity disorder. Just take on various different legal persona, and, presto, you get another $250K of coverage.

Start with you as an individual: $250,000 of coverage is provided for accounts in your name.

You as a joint account owner (such as with a spouse, parent or child): $250,000 of coverage for each joint account owner. So a joint account for a married couple gets $500,000 of total coverage.

You as the owner of an IRA: $250,000 of additional coverage for your IRA accounts.

You as the owner of a revocable trust account: another $250K of coverage per beneficiary.

You as the beneficiary of an irrevocable trust account: yet another $250K of coverage for all beneficial interests granted by the same person creating trusts (known to lawyers as the "settlor") at any one bank.

A corporation that you own: another $250K coverage, as long as you operate the corporation for an independent purpose (i.e., a purpose other than increasing your FDIC coverage).

Then, here's your ace in the hole: if the foregoing account types aren't enough to protect the enormity of your wealth, you can, until Dec. 31, 2012, get unlimited FDIC coverage for non-interest bearing transaction accounts. In other words, you can open a non-interest bearing checking account, and protect as many of your hard-earned shekels as you like until the end of 2012. If you hear some ringing that sounds like Hell's Bells, keep this in mind.

What are the chances that FDIC coverage will actually matter to you? So far, in 2011, 55 banks have been closed by the FDIC. In 2010, there were 157 bank closings. The number in 2009 was 140. Banks close when the financial system goes bonkers and the economy nosedives. If today's governmental debt crises keep metastasizing, more banks will fail, and holders of uninsured deposits will take losses. If your money is too concentrated for full coverage, spread it around.

In addition, if your money is an uninsured place, like a money market fund, you may want to move some or all of it into FDIC insured accounts. The European debt crisis has cast a cloud over money market funds holding commercial paper of European banks (which would be many of them; check to see if your fund holds it). The U.S. debt ceiling showdown could cause losses--probably minor, but you never know--for money market funds holding U.S. Treasury bills (many funds hold T-bills in varying amounts). FDIC protection for at least some of your cash may improve the quality of your sleep.

For more information on FDIC deposit insurance, go to http://www.fdic.gov/deposit/deposits/insured/index.html.