FDIC cuts budget, plans staff reductions

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. Board of Directors yesterday approved a budget with a 3 percent reduction from 2014 and authorization for staff cuts.

The $2.32 billion budget represents the fifth consecutive year of reductions for the FDIC, according to Chairman Martin Gruenberg.

"As the U.S. banking industry continues to recover, we remain focused on fulfilling our mission responsibilities while prudently managing costs,” he said in a news release.

According to the FDIC’s budget document, the reduction is largely due to “substantially reduced resource requirements for the receivership budget component.”

The approved budget also calls for 325 positions to be cut, bringing its 2015 staffing level down to 6,875 from its current 7,200.

Created by Congress in 1933, the FDIC insured deposits at 6,589 banks and savings associations as of Sept. 30. The agency, which receives no federal tax dollars, is funded by financial institutions, according to the release.