FDIC-insured

'FDIC insured' -- this is an imporatnt phrase that we must always check
out before we put our cash into any bank in any form. But, as we know, its
coverage is upto $100,000. For many of our senior citizens who are
already retired or are approaching that soon, this is a problem, if they wish
to keep most of their wealth in safe deposits rather than investing in stock
market. Nevertheless, just 60% of our $4.4 trillion in deposits are FDIC-
insured today.That's down from 77% of $2.5 trillion in deposits that were
insured in 1992.

There are a few ways to get more than $100,000 of FDIC insurance
coverage on your bank deposits, despite the agency's insurance limits:

(i) Visit www.FDIC.gov or call 1-877-275-3342 to find out how you might
obtain more FDIC-coverage by splitting your money into different
ownership categories including single accounts, joint accounts, self-directed
retirement accounts and revocable trust accounts.

(ii) Visit www.cdars.com. CDARS stands for Central Deposit Account Registry
Service, a CD placement service owned by Promontory Interfinancial
Network LLC, Arlington, Va. One can get coverage upto $20 million through
this program. Through this service, you select a participating bank which
arranges to split your deposits among member institutions. You get the rate
paid by the bank at which you open the account. Bridge payments are made
between that bank and the other participating banks to compensate for any
interest-rate discrepancies.

(iii) Some companies -- including The Calvert Group and Merrill Lynch --
automatically provide extra FDIC insurance through specific accounts. The
Calvert Group may split-up bank money-market deposit account funds
among four participating banks through its"Insured Market Plus" account.
This means as much as $400,000 of FDIC insurance per person. Merrill
Lynch's "Insured Savings" Account is available through certain types of
accounts. Twenty-five banks currently participate in this program.