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Under this arrangement, FSLIC
qualification examinations were expedited, using the resources of the FHLB
System and the Federal Reserve.
The Federal Reserve offered its assistance to help complete the FSLIC
examinations as rapidly as possible.
We believed we could facilitate this
process because our examiners were
already in place at the ODGF institutions
and had gained familiarity with these
institutions through the just-completed
examinations conducted on March 16
and 17.
As of Friday, March 29, according
to the State of Ohio, 26 of the former
ODGF institutions have been reopened
for the full range of banking functions,
most with federal insurance. Confidence
in these institutions seems to have been
fully restored. There has been no
evidence of unusual withdrawals or need
for assistance through either the credit
facilities of the FHLB of Cincinnati or
the Federal Reserve discount window.

Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland
Research Department
P.O. Box 6387
Cleveland, OH 44101

Address Correction Requested: Please send
corrected mailing label to the Federal Reserve
Bank of Cleveland, Research Department,
P.O. Box 6387, Cleveland, OH 44101.

The federal deposit insurance applications of some ODGF institutions are
still being considered. Other ODGF
institutions have been informed of the
changes and improvements that will be
necessary to enable them to obtain
federal insurance.
The State of Ohio is making intense
efforts to develop an orderly plan for
those institutions that might not qualify
for federal insurance. It is my understanding that a final outline of such
a plan is not yet complete. A solution
may have to involve the sale of some
ODGF institutions to other Ohio financial
institutions and, perhaps, also to outof-state institutions. The Federal
Reserve Bank of Cleveland has not
participated in the discussions involving
plans for any single institution, except
those for which Federal Reserve
regulatory approval was required, such
as the sale of Metropolitan Savings
Bank of Youngstown to FNB Corporation,
a Pennsylvania bank holding company,
and the conversion of Scioto Savings
Association into a state-chartered
FDIC-insured commercial bank under
the continuing ownership of its parent
company, Society Corporation, an Ohio
bank holding company.

While this process is underway, the
state has authorized the ODGF institutions not yet qualified to reopen for full
business to open for the limited purposes
of giving each depositor access to a
maximum of $750 per month and pledging
assets to and borrowing from correspondent banks or the Federal Reserve
discount window to fund the limited
deposit withdrawals. Complete confidence
in the ODGF institutions has not been
restored, but the atmosphere is much
calmer than it was two weeks ago.

BULK RATE

u.s. Postage

Paid
Cleveland,OH
Permit No. 385

Federal

Reserve Bank of Cleveland

April 1, 1985
ISSN 0428-1276

ECONOMIC
COMMENTARY
I am pleased to appear before the
Commerce, Consumer, and Monetary
Affairs Subcommittee to discuss the
Federal Reserve's response to the recent
problems experienced by thrifts insured
by the Ohio Deposit Guarantee Fund.
This morning I will be reviewing for you
the response of the Federal Reserve
Bank of Cleveland.
I would like to begin by stating that
the role of the Federal Reserve Bank
of Cleveland throughout this period
has been to assist the State of Ohio and
other federal regulators in fashioning
a solution. Our initial involvement was
to insure that we could act quickly to
provide liquidity assistance at the
discount window and to make currency
shipments - first to Home State and
subsequently to other institutions
insured by the Ohio Deposit Guarantee
Fund (ODGF). We have acted at the
request of the State of Ohio, and
throughout this period the Federal Reserve
Bank of Cleveland and the Federal
Home Loan Bank (FHLB) of Cincinnati
have shared information and staff in a
cooperative effort to deal with the
problems and to fashion solutions.
I would also like to recognize the
substantial and supportive role of the
correspondent banks in Cincinnati.
I believe the Federal Reserve has been
helpful, and we will continue to assist
the State of Ohio and other federal
regulators until the problem is solved.

Karen N. Horn is the president 0/ the Federal Reserve
Bank 0/ Cleveland. This Economic Commentary is
a transcript 0/ Mrs. Horn's testimony be/ore the
Subcommittee on Commerce, Consumer, and Monetary
Affairs 0/ the Committee on Government Operations,
U.S. House 0/ Representatives, April 3, 1985.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland
first became aware of possible financial
difficulties at Home State Savings
Bank of Cincinnati, Ohio on March 4,
1985, when an official of Home State
telephoned the Federal Reserve Bank
of Cleveland to inquire about the
procedures Home State should follow if
it needed to borrow at the discount
window. The Federal Reserve Bank of
Cleveland did not have any financial
information on Home State. It is a
state-chartered savings and loan
association, regulated and examined
by the Ohio Division of Savings and Loan
Associations, and prior to this time
it had never borrowed at the discount
window. We did know that Home State's
deposits were insured by the ODGF,
but we did not have access to any
financial reports on Home State. On
March 5, the press reported that Home
State might suffer a large loss in
connection with the failure of E.S.M.
Government Securities, Inc. (E.S.M.), a
Florida -based broker-dealer in
government securities. The Federal
Reserve began an effort to gather
information on Home State's situation.
Discussions with the FHLB of Cincinnati
confirmed that Home State was not a
member of the FHLB and that the FHLB
also had little financial information on
Home State.

Federal Reserve's
Response to the
Problems Experienced
by ODGF Thrifts.
Statement by Karen N. Horn

Reports from Cincinnati on Wednesday,
March 6, indicated a large volume of
depositor withdrawals at Home State.
On that same day, Federal Reserve
examiners entered Home State to examine
available collateral in the event that
it became necessary for Home State to
borrow at the discount window. Depositor
withdrawals on Wednesday and
Thursday were funded with Home State's
own liquidity and lending by the ODGF.

We have acted at the request of
the State of Ohio, and throughout
this period the Federal Reserve
Bank of Cleveland and the Federal
Home Loan Bank (FHLB) of
Cincinnati have shared information
and staff in a cooperative effort
to deal with the problems and to
fashion solutions.
The withdrawals on March 6 totaled
$55 million. On March 7, a meeting was
held at the Cincinnati Branch of the
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland
with representatives from the State of
Ohio, ODGF, and Home State to discuss
liquidity assistance for Home State
from the Federal Reserve Bank of
Cleveland. Based on collateral judged to
be acceptable by the Federal Reserve
Bank, credit was extended on Friday,
March 8, and arrangements were put
in place to extend further credit.

Depositor withdrawals had continued
on March 7 and 8, reaching approximately
$100 million for those two days.
On Saturday, March 9, Home State
did not open for business. Governor
Celeste appointed a conservator for
Home State and announced on Sunday
night, March 10, that Home State would
not reopen for business on Monday.
Although the problems at Home State
were triggered by unique events
growing out of its transactions with
E.S.M., the severity of the public
reaction made us concerned about
possible deposit withdrawals at other
ODGF-insured institutions. As I mentioned earlier, deposits at Home State
were insured by the ODGF, a private
fund that also insured 70 other statechartered thrift institutions in Ohio.
According to state officials, the
insurance fund had assets of about $130
million prior to the run on Home State.
Uncertainty regarding other ODGFinsured institutions was increased by
reports on the use of ODGF funds to deal
with Home State's heavy deposit
withdrawals. Financial information on
all ODGF-insured institutions was made
available to the Federal Reserve Bank
of Cleveland late Friday, March 8.
Federal Reserve examiners and
discount-window staff reviewed and
analyzed this information on Saturday
and Sunday, March 9 and 10, with the
assistance of senior examination
personnel from the FHLB of Cincinnati.
Growing concern that other ODGF
institutions might confront problems
on Monday led us on Saturday, March 9,
to develop a plan to monitor and deal
with deposit withdrawals at other
ODGF institutions, should they occur.

The plan had several dimensions:
(1) having a timely and effective
mechanism for sensing unusually heavy
deposit withdrawals, (2) informing
ODGF institutions of collateral and
other requirements for borrowing at the
discount window, and (3) planning and
putting into place the logistics necessary
to deliver currency, evaluate collateral,
and obtain documents for borrowing
at the discount window. The large
number of ODGF institutions and the
need for prompt and effective action,
if action were required, made it
imperative that we be prepared to deal
with the problem by Monday, March 11,
when the ODGF institutions opened.

Although the problems at Home
State were triggered by unique
events growing out of its transactions with E.S.M., the severity
of the public reaction made us
concerned about possible deposit
withdrawals at other ODGFinsured institutions.
We were fortunate in being able to
draw upon staff from other Federal
Reserve Banks to assist in the contingency
planning and logistics. The weekend
planning effort concluded with meetings
at 10:00 p.m. on Sunday, March 10,
in both Cleveland and Cincinnati to brief
Federal Reserve examiners on their
role in the contingency plans. These plans
called for examiners to be strategically
placed near ODGF institutions throughout
the state prepared to deliver borrowing
documents upon request.
Also, late Sunday evening, March 10,
following the Governor's announcement
that Home State would not reopen on
Monday, the Cleveland Federal Reserve
Bank publicly restated its discountwindow policy: "State-chartered savings
and loans and savings banks, like all
depository institutions, are eligible for
liquidity assistance through the
discount window ... under normal terms
and conditions:' Our weekend efforts

had made it possible to implement the
policy, to monitor deposit flows, to
lend at the discount window, and to
ship cash throughout the weeks that
followed to a large number of institutions,
most of which had not dealt with our
discount window and which normally
received their currency from other sources.
Public confidence in ODGF institutions
continued to decline. As financial
institutions opened on Monday, March 11,
the evidence of the loss in depositors'
confidence was almost immediate.
At first the loss of confidence was largely
confined to Cincinnati, where Home
State is located. As the week progressed,
the number of ODGF institutions
suffering heavy cash drains increased,
and the volume of withdrawals rose
sharply. On Thursday, March 14, for
example, the seven most affected
institutions in the Cincinnati area lost
more than $60 million in depositsalmost triple the amount withdrawn on
Wednesday. Several institutions had
lost one-fifth of their deposits between
Monday morning and Thursday night,
and there was clear evidence that the
crisis was spreading to ODGF-insured
institutions in other cities. The more
public confidence fell, the more serious
the problem became. Federal Reserve
examiners were sent upon request to
many institutions to begin reviewing
collateral as deposit withdrawals and
the potential for borrowing at the discount
window increased. The Federal Reserve
and other commercial banks shipped
currency to institutions that were
experiencing heavy withdrawals, but
cash alone was not enough to restore
confidence; without confidence, even
the strongest financial institution can be
severely impacted.

Our active and visible role was to
provide liquidity assistance to ODGF
institutions at the discount window.
In performing this function, the Federal
Reserve Bank of Cleveland has not
modified the normal eligibility requirements for discount-window assistance
in any way. The Monetary Control Act
of 1980 made the discount window
of the Federal Reserve Bank available
to any depository institution that holds
transactions accounts or non personal
time deposits. Regulation A of the
Board of Governors, which prescribes
standards for the operation of the
discount window, provides for lending
to eligible depository institutions under
two basic programs. One is the adjustment credit program; the other supplies
credit for seasonal and other limited
purposes for more extended periods.
Adjustment credit is available on a
short -term basis to assist borrowers in
meeting temporary requirements for
funds while an orderly adjustment is
being made in their assets and deposit
liabilities.
All Federal Reserve advances must
be secured to the satisfaction of the
Reserve Bank providing the credit.

Our active and visible role was
to provide liquidity assistance to
ODGF institutions at the discount
window. In performing this function,
the Federal Reserve Bank of
Cleveland has not modified the
normal eligibility requirements for
discount-window assistance in
any way.
Satisfactory collateral includes securities
of the U.S. government and of federal
agencies and, if of acceptable quality,
residential mortgage notes and other
assets. Although collateral is generally
held in safekeeping at the Federal

Reserve Banks or acceptable third-party
custodians, in this instance, field
warehouses were set up in most ODGF
institutions where collateral was
identified, evaluated, and earmarked
for possible use in securing discountwindow borrowings.
The Federal Reserve played another
very important role during the ODGF
savings and loan problem - we served
as a facilitator. During the early morning
hours of Friday, March 15, when the
full dimensions of the problem became
clear, Governor Celeste decided to
close all ODGF member institutions for
a three-day period. Following that
decision, the Governor requested that
the Federal Reserve assist him in calling
a meeting of large Ohio banking and
thrift institutions to discuss the situation
with them and propose a solution to
the problem. A meeting with representatives of 13 Ohio depository
institutions - banks and S&Ls - was
convened that morning at the Federal
Reserve Bank of Cleveland. At that
meeting, Governor Celeste explained his
decision to close the ODGF institutions
and discussed a legislative proposal
that would require the ODGF institutions
to obtain federal insurance before
reopening. He also presented a proposal
for dealing with the ODGF institutions
that would not qualify for federal
insurance. The state subsequently
decided it would be useful to discuss
the situation with out-of-state banks,
and two meetings were held with outof-state institutions at the Federal
Reserve Bank of Cleveland - one on
Saturday, March 16, at 9:00 p.m. and
another on Sunday, March 17, at
11:00 a.m.
In the past two weeks, some elements
of a solution have fallen into place.
Each ODGF institution was examined
on a case-by-case basis to determine
its financial condition and the likelihood
of its qualifying for federal insurance.
The State Superintendent of Savings
and Loan Associations requested
assistance from the Federal Reserve,

the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
(FDIC), and the Ohio Division of Banks
in conducting these examinations. This
process began on Saturday, March 16,

The results of the preliminary
examinations made it clear that a
large number of these institutions
were well- managed, in sound
financial condition, and, consequently, viable candidates for
federal deposit insurance.
with examiners provided by the Federal
Reserve Bank of Cleveland and,
eventually, by every other Federal
Reserve Bank. Examiners were assigned
to each of the ODGF institutions.
Virtually all examinations were completed on Sunday, March 17, enabling
us to conduct a preliminary review of
the condition of each institution to
supplement and update the information
obtained the previous Friday from
the state. The results of the preliminary
examinations made it clear that a large
number of these institutions were
well-managed, in sound financial
condition, and, consequently, viable
candidates for federal deposit insurance.
Others, for a variety of reasons, would
have difficulty qualifying for federal
deposit insurance. The FHLB Board
agreed to review, on an expedited basis,
the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance
Corporation (FSLIC) insurance applications of ODGF member institutions.

Depositor withdrawals had continued
on March 7 and 8, reaching approximately
$100 million for those two days.
On Saturday, March 9, Home State
did not open for business. Governor
Celeste appointed a conservator for
Home State and announced on Sunday
night, March 10, that Home State would
not reopen for business on Monday.
Although the problems at Home State
were triggered by unique events
growing out of its transactions with
E.S.M., the severity of the public
reaction made us concerned about
possible deposit withdrawals at other
ODGF-insured institutions. As I mentioned earlier, deposits at Home State
were insured by the ODGF, a private
fund that also insured 70 other statechartered thrift institutions in Ohio.
According to state officials, the
insurance fund had assets of about $130
million prior to the run on Home State.
Uncertainty regarding other ODGFinsured institutions was increased by
reports on the use of ODGF funds to deal
with Home State's heavy deposit
withdrawals. Financial information on
all ODGF-insured institutions was made
available to the Federal Reserve Bank
of Cleveland late Friday, March 8.
Federal Reserve examiners and
discount-window staff reviewed and
analyzed this information on Saturday
and Sunday, March 9 and 10, with the
assistance of senior examination
personnel from the FHLB of Cincinnati.
Growing concern that other ODGF
institutions might confront problems
on Monday led us on Saturday, March 9,
to develop a plan to monitor and deal
with deposit withdrawals at other
ODGF institutions, should they occur.

The plan had several dimensions:
(1) having a timely and effective
mechanism for sensing unusually heavy
deposit withdrawals, (2) informing
ODGF institutions of collateral and
other requirements for borrowing at the
discount window, and (3) planning and
putting into place the logistics necessary
to deliver currency, evaluate collateral,
and obtain documents for borrowing
at the discount window. The large
number of ODGF institutions and the
need for prompt and effective action,
if action were required, made it
imperative that we be prepared to deal
with the problem by Monday, March 11,
when the ODGF institutions opened.

Although the problems at Home
State were triggered by unique
events growing out of its transactions with E.S.M., the severity
of the public reaction made us
concerned about possible deposit
withdrawals at other ODGFinsured institutions.
We were fortunate in being able to
draw upon staff from other Federal
Reserve Banks to assist in the contingency
planning and logistics. The weekend
planning effort concluded with meetings
at 10:00 p.m. on Sunday, March 10,
in both Cleveland and Cincinnati to brief
Federal Reserve examiners on their
role in the contingency plans. These plans
called for examiners to be strategically
placed near ODGF institutions throughout
the state prepared to deliver borrowing
documents upon request.
Also, late Sunday evening, March 10,
following the Governor's announcement
that Home State would not reopen on
Monday, the Cleveland Federal Reserve
Bank publicly restated its discountwindow policy: "State-chartered savings
and loans and savings banks, like all
depository institutions, are eligible for
liquidity assistance through the
discount window ... under normal terms
and conditions:' Our weekend efforts

had made it possible to implement the
policy, to monitor deposit flows, to
lend at the discount window, and to
ship cash throughout the weeks that
followed to a large number of institutions,
most of which had not dealt with our
discount window and which normally
received their currency from other sources.
Public confidence in ODGF institutions
continued to decline. As financial
institutions opened on Monday, March 11,
the evidence of the loss in depositors'
confidence was almost immediate.
At first the loss of confidence was largely
confined to Cincinnati, where Home
State is located. As the week progressed,
the number of ODGF institutions
suffering heavy cash drains increased,
and the volume of withdrawals rose
sharply. On Thursday, March 14, for
example, the seven most affected
institutions in the Cincinnati area lost
more than $60 million in depositsalmost triple the amount withdrawn on
Wednesday. Several institutions had
lost one-fifth of their deposits between
Monday morning and Thursday night,
and there was clear evidence that the
crisis was spreading to ODGF-insured
institutions in other cities. The more
public confidence fell, the more serious
the problem became. Federal Reserve
examiners were sent upon request to
many institutions to begin reviewing
collateral as deposit withdrawals and
the potential for borrowing at the discount
window increased. The Federal Reserve
and other commercial banks shipped
currency to institutions that were
experiencing heavy withdrawals, but
cash alone was not enough to restore
confidence; without confidence, even
the strongest financial institution can be
severely impacted.

Our active and visible role was to
provide liquidity assistance to ODGF
institutions at the discount window.
In performing this function, the Federal
Reserve Bank of Cleveland has not
modified the normal eligibility requirements for discount-window assistance
in any way. The Monetary Control Act
of 1980 made the discount window
of the Federal Reserve Bank available
to any depository institution that holds
transactions accounts or non personal
time deposits. Regulation A of the
Board of Governors, which prescribes
standards for the operation of the
discount window, provides for lending
to eligible depository institutions under
two basic programs. One is the adjustment credit program; the other supplies
credit for seasonal and other limited
purposes for more extended periods.
Adjustment credit is available on a
short -term basis to assist borrowers in
meeting temporary requirements for
funds while an orderly adjustment is
being made in their assets and deposit
liabilities.
All Federal Reserve advances must
be secured to the satisfaction of the
Reserve Bank providing the credit.

Our active and visible role was
to provide liquidity assistance to
ODGF institutions at the discount
window. In performing this function,
the Federal Reserve Bank of
Cleveland has not modified the
normal eligibility requirements for
discount-window assistance in
any way.
Satisfactory collateral includes securities
of the U.S. government and of federal
agencies and, if of acceptable quality,
residential mortgage notes and other
assets. Although collateral is generally
held in safekeeping at the Federal

Reserve Banks or acceptable third-party
custodians, in this instance, field
warehouses were set up in most ODGF
institutions where collateral was
identified, evaluated, and earmarked
for possible use in securing discountwindow borrowings.
The Federal Reserve played another
very important role during the ODGF
savings and loan problem - we served
as a facilitator. During the early morning
hours of Friday, March 15, when the
full dimensions of the problem became
clear, Governor Celeste decided to
close all ODGF member institutions for
a three-day period. Following that
decision, the Governor requested that
the Federal Reserve assist him in calling
a meeting of large Ohio banking and
thrift institutions to discuss the situation
with them and propose a solution to
the problem. A meeting with representatives of 13 Ohio depository
institutions - banks and S&Ls - was
convened that morning at the Federal
Reserve Bank of Cleveland. At that
meeting, Governor Celeste explained his
decision to close the ODGF institutions
and discussed a legislative proposal
that would require the ODGF institutions
to obtain federal insurance before
reopening. He also presented a proposal
for dealing with the ODGF institutions
that would not qualify for federal
insurance. The state subsequently
decided it would be useful to discuss
the situation with out-of-state banks,
and two meetings were held with outof-state institutions at the Federal
Reserve Bank of Cleveland - one on
Saturday, March 16, at 9:00 p.m. and
another on Sunday, March 17, at
11:00 a.m.
In the past two weeks, some elements
of a solution have fallen into place.
Each ODGF institution was examined
on a case-by-case basis to determine
its financial condition and the likelihood
of its qualifying for federal insurance.
The State Superintendent of Savings
and Loan Associations requested
assistance from the Federal Reserve,

the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
(FDIC), and the Ohio Division of Banks
in conducting these examinations. This
process began on Saturday, March 16,

The results of the preliminary
examinations made it clear that a
large number of these institutions
were well- managed, in sound
financial condition, and, consequently, viable candidates for
federal deposit insurance.
with examiners provided by the Federal
Reserve Bank of Cleveland and,
eventually, by every other Federal
Reserve Bank. Examiners were assigned
to each of the ODGF institutions.
Virtually all examinations were completed on Sunday, March 17, enabling
us to conduct a preliminary review of
the condition of each institution to
supplement and update the information
obtained the previous Friday from
the state. The results of the preliminary
examinations made it clear that a large
number of these institutions were
well-managed, in sound financial
condition, and, consequently, viable
candidates for federal deposit insurance.
Others, for a variety of reasons, would
have difficulty qualifying for federal
deposit insurance. The FHLB Board
agreed to review, on an expedited basis,
the Federal Savings and Loan Insurance
Corporation (FSLIC) insurance applications of ODGF member institutions.

Under this arrangement, FSLIC
qualification examinations were expedited, using the resources of the FHLB
System and the Federal Reserve.
The Federal Reserve offered its assistance to help complete the FSLIC
examinations as rapidly as possible.
We believed we could facilitate this
process because our examiners were
already in place at the ODGF institutions
and had gained familiarity with these
institutions through the just-completed
examinations conducted on March 16
and 17.
As of Friday, March 29, according
to the State of Ohio, 26 of the former
ODGF institutions have been reopened
for the full range of banking functions,
most with federal insurance. Confidence
in these institutions seems to have been
fully restored. There has been no
evidence of unusual withdrawals or need
for assistance through either the credit
facilities of the FHLB of Cincinnati or
the Federal Reserve discount window.

Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland
Research Department
P.O. Box 6387
Cleveland, OH 44101

Address Correction Requested: Please send
corrected mailing label to the Federal Reserve
Bank of Cleveland, Research Department,
P.O. Box 6387, Cleveland, OH 44101.

The federal deposit insurance applications of some ODGF institutions are
still being considered. Other ODGF
institutions have been informed of the
changes and improvements that will be
necessary to enable them to obtain
federal insurance.
The State of Ohio is making intense
efforts to develop an orderly plan for
those institutions that might not qualify
for federal insurance. It is my understanding that a final outline of such
a plan is not yet complete. A solution
may have to involve the sale of some
ODGF institutions to other Ohio financial
institutions and, perhaps, also to outof-state institutions. The Federal
Reserve Bank of Cleveland has not
participated in the discussions involving
plans for any single institution, except
those for which Federal Reserve
regulatory approval was required, such
as the sale of Metropolitan Savings
Bank of Youngstown to FNB Corporation,
a Pennsylvania bank holding company,
and the conversion of Scioto Savings
Association into a state-chartered
FDIC-insured commercial bank under
the continuing ownership of its parent
company, Society Corporation, an Ohio
bank holding company.

While this process is underway, the
state has authorized the ODGF institutions not yet qualified to reopen for full
business to open for the limited purposes
of giving each depositor access to a
maximum of $750 per month and pledging
assets to and borrowing from correspondent banks or the Federal Reserve
discount window to fund the limited
deposit withdrawals. Complete confidence
in the ODGF institutions has not been
restored, but the atmosphere is much
calmer than it was two weeks ago.

BULK RATE

u.s. Postage

Paid
Cleveland,OH
Permit No. 385

Federal

Reserve Bank of Cleveland

April 1, 1985
ISSN 0428-1276

ECONOMIC
COMMENTARY
I am pleased to appear before the
Commerce, Consumer, and Monetary
Affairs Subcommittee to discuss the
Federal Reserve's response to the recent
problems experienced by thrifts insured
by the Ohio Deposit Guarantee Fund.
This morning I will be reviewing for you
the response of the Federal Reserve
Bank of Cleveland.
I would like to begin by stating that
the role of the Federal Reserve Bank
of Cleveland throughout this period
has been to assist the State of Ohio and
other federal regulators in fashioning
a solution. Our initial involvement was
to insure that we could act quickly to
provide liquidity assistance at the
discount window and to make currency
shipments - first to Home State and
subsequently to other institutions
insured by the Ohio Deposit Guarantee
Fund (ODGF). We have acted at the
request of the State of Ohio, and
throughout this period the Federal Reserve
Bank of Cleveland and the Federal
Home Loan Bank (FHLB) of Cincinnati
have shared information and staff in a
cooperative effort to deal with the
problems and to fashion solutions.
I would also like to recognize the
substantial and supportive role of the
correspondent banks in Cincinnati.
I believe the Federal Reserve has been
helpful, and we will continue to assist
the State of Ohio and other federal
regulators until the problem is solved.

Karen N. Horn is the president 0/ the Federal Reserve
Bank 0/ Cleveland. This Economic Commentary is
a transcript 0/ Mrs. Horn's testimony be/ore the
Subcommittee on Commerce, Consumer, and Monetary
Affairs 0/ the Committee on Government Operations,
U.S. House 0/ Representatives, April 3, 1985.

The Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland
first became aware of possible financial
difficulties at Home State Savings
Bank of Cincinnati, Ohio on March 4,
1985, when an official of Home State
telephoned the Federal Reserve Bank
of Cleveland to inquire about the
procedures Home State should follow if
it needed to borrow at the discount
window. The Federal Reserve Bank of
Cleveland did not have any financial
information on Home State. It is a
state-chartered savings and loan
association, regulated and examined
by the Ohio Division of Savings and Loan
Associations, and prior to this time
it had never borrowed at the discount
window. We did know that Home State's
deposits were insured by the ODGF,
but we did not have access to any
financial reports on Home State. On
March 5, the press reported that Home
State might suffer a large loss in
connection with the failure of E.S.M.
Government Securities, Inc. (E.S.M.), a
Florida -based broker-dealer in
government securities. The Federal
Reserve began an effort to gather
information on Home State's situation.
Discussions with the FHLB of Cincinnati
confirmed that Home State was not a
member of the FHLB and that the FHLB
also had little financial information on
Home State.

Federal Reserve's
Response to the
Problems Experienced
by ODGF Thrifts.
Statement by Karen N. Horn

Reports from Cincinnati on Wednesday,
March 6, indicated a large volume of
depositor withdrawals at Home State.
On that same day, Federal Reserve
examiners entered Home State to examine
available collateral in the event that
it became necessary for Home State to
borrow at the discount window. Depositor
withdrawals on Wednesday and
Thursday were funded with Home State's
own liquidity and lending by the ODGF.

We have acted at the request of
the State of Ohio, and throughout
this period the Federal Reserve
Bank of Cleveland and the Federal
Home Loan Bank (FHLB) of
Cincinnati have shared information
and staff in a cooperative effort
to deal with the problems and to
fashion solutions.
The withdrawals on March 6 totaled
$55 million. On March 7, a meeting was
held at the Cincinnati Branch of the
Federal Reserve Bank of Cleveland
with representatives from the State of
Ohio, ODGF, and Home State to discuss
liquidity assistance for Home State
from the Federal Reserve Bank of
Cleveland. Based on collateral judged to
be acceptable by the Federal Reserve
Bank, credit was extended on Friday,
March 8, and arrangements were put
in place to extend further credit.