Two Utah banks have been named to Money magazine's list of the nation's 97 strongest "blue ribbon" banks in its September issue.
Central Bank in Provo and Barnes Banking in Kaysville were the two Utah banks represented on the list that is compiled by the Veribanc bank rating service. To be listed, banks must meet "stringent" safety criteria. No bank has ever failed in the 11 years Veribanc has compiled the list.Each state, including the District of Columbia, was represented in Money's list by two banks, except for Hawaii, Idaho and Rhode Island, which only had one "blue ribbon" bank each and Arizona, which had none.
The magazine also listed what it termed the "weakest" banks in the United States. Fourteen states were listed with weak banks, from one in Arkansas to 18 in Texas. No Mountain States banks were listed in the "weakest" category.
As reported last week, the same issue of Money names Provo/Orem as the "eighth best place to live in America," down from first place in the same ranking last year.