The First 17 Banks to Receive TARP Investments Named

The Treasury Department reportedly signed deals to invest in 17 banks, mainly super-regionals, with Troubled Asset Recovery Program funds.

The banks, listed by size of investment, are:

* PNC Financial Services Group – $7.7 billion;
* Capital One Financial Corp. – $3.55 billion;
* Regions Financial Corp. – $3.5 billion;
* SunTrust Banks – $3.5 billion;
* Fifth Third Bancorp – $3.4 billion;
* BB&T Corp. – $3.1 billion;
* KeyCorp – $2.5 billion;
* Comerica – $2.25 billion;
* State Street Corp. – $2.0 billion;
* Northern Trust Corp. – $1.5 billion;
* Huntington Bancshares – $1.4 billion;
* First Horizon National Corp. – $866 million;
* City National Corp. – $395 million;
* Valley National Bancorp – $330 million;
* Washington Federal – $200 million; and
* First Niagara Financial Group, $186 million.

Old National Bancorp [ONB] also indicated today that it would participate in the Treasury program, although the bank did not specify the size of the government’s investment.

The investments are all part of the Treasury Capital Purchase Program for “healthy institutions.” The program is part of the Treasury’s bailout package. Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson has decided to use $250 billion of the $700 billion of bailout funds to make direct purchases of bank stock. The investments, which effectively nationalize a part of the nation’s banking system, are intended to bolster the financial state of U.S. banks.