The FDIC also stated that the list of so-alled problem banks dipped below 300 for the first time since 2008 to 291 at the end of 2014.
Smaller banks, notably community banks, have suffered as sweeping regulations under the Dodd–Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act pressure profits. [Dodd-Frank is a Pain for This ETF]
However, the smaller banks are pressuring regulators to relax rules that were meant for larger banks. [Small Bank, Financial ETFs Could Capitalize on Looser Regulations]
Additionally, investors who want to target the small-cap category in the financial space but still want some steady exposure to slightly larger companies can also consider equal-weight index-based ETFs as well. For example, the SPDR S&P Bank ETF (NYSEArca: KBE) includes a 7.8% tilt toward mega-caps, 6.4% to large-caps, 37.9% to mid-caps and 47.2% to small-caps, and the SPDR S&P Regional Banking ETF (NYSEArca: KRE) leans more toward small-caps at 53.2%, along with mid-caps 23.6%, micro-caps 17.0% and large-caps 4.2%.
For more information on the financial sector, visit our financial category.