A quick update on the status of government bailout programs. Today, Hartford Financial Services Group became the latest company to repay the money that it got in the Troubled Asset Relief Program (TARP) bailout. The Hartford repurchased $3.4 billion worth of preferred shares from the government. The bailout was the second largest issued to U.S. insurance companies, second only to American International Group (AIG), which received $182 billion in aid.
This news follows the news that the Treasury Department intends to sell 7.7 billion shares of CitiGroup at a profit of between $7-8 billion.
Many companies have been quick to pay back funds from the much-criticized bailout. Bank of America and Wells Fargo, among the largest TARP funds recipients, have both withdrawn from the bailout program.
Other banks lenders yet to repurchase their assets from Treasury include GMAC, KeyCorp, Regions Financial of Alabama, SunTrust, and Fifth Third.
Still other TARP fund recipients are in trouble, according to many reports. At least 17 banks failed to meet the Treasury’s capital-reserve thresholds. Many have missed at least one dividend payment on the preferred stock sold to the government under TARP.
What do you think about the success or failure of TARP? Comment below.
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