New York Community Bancorp

The story of New York Community Bancorp begins long before its formal incorporation, with roots tracing back to 1859 when Queens County Savings Bank was chartered. For over a century, it served the borough of Queens. The modern chapter started in 1993, when the bank, led by Joseph R. Ficalora, formed a holding company, Queens County Bancorp, Inc., and went public on the NASDAQ. This set the stage for a series of acquisitions, and in 2000, the company adopted the name New York Community Bancorp (NYCB) to reflect its expanding reach. For years, NYCB grew by acquiring other local thrifts, focusing its lending on a niche market: non-luxury, rent-regulated multifamily properties in New York City. This strategy provided steady, low-risk growth. A pivotal moment arrived in December 2022, when NYCB completed its acquisition of Flagstar Bancorp. This was a strategic move to diversify its loan portfolio and funding sources, creating a regional bank with nearly $90 billion in assets. Opportunity knocked again in March 2023 amidst a banking crisis. NYCB, through its Flagstar subsidiary, acquired a significant portion of the assets and deposits from the failed Signature Bank. This deal rapidly accelerated NYCB's transformation, adding valuable commercial and industrial lending businesses and a substantial, low-cost deposit base. However, this rapid growth also brought new challenges, and by early 2024, the company faced credit rating downgrades related to its commercial real estate exposure, leading to a significant capital infusion and a leadership overhaul to stabilize its future.