NY Community Bancorp slides as Fed Chief eyes ‘challenged’ areas

New York Community Bancorp’s stock has dropped to its lowest level in 24 years after news broke that its chief risk officer has left the company. The news was accompanied by comments from US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen expressing her concerns about the risks associated with commercial real estate for banks. The stock is now down 55% in the past five sessions, following the announcement of an unexpected loss and problems with two loans. The stock decline also impacted the SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF, which fell by 1.3%. Yellen believes the issue of weak values of commercial real estate can be managed, but admits that some institutions may be stressed by this problem. Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell has also voiced his worries, stating that some smaller and regional banks have “concentrated exposures in these areas that are challenged”. Despite this, Powell does not believe that the situation will lead to a crisis on the scale of the global financial crisis. Other regional bank stocks also declined in response to the news of New York Community Bancorp’s stock slide.