BUSINESS BRIEFING : BANKING : FDIC to require fee prepayment

The country’s banks will prepay three years of industry fees -- about $45 billion -- to give the government cash to handle the rising tide of bank failures, under a rule finalized by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.

The FDIC would not be able to use the money to bring up the balance of the insurance fund that safeguards bank deposits, but the agency would gain operating liquidity.

Banks would not have to book the expense until the insurance premiums came due over the three-year period.