Bank Branches › Closed and merged banks › Connecticut › Whitney Bank and Trust
What happened to Whitney Bank and Trust?
Whitney Bank and Trust in Hamden, CT failed, and First Constitution Bank of New Haven, CT took it over on Apr 12, 1991. After 3 more changes of hands, what was Whitney Bank and Trust is today part of Santander Bank, N.A. (Wilmington, DE).
The chain, step by step
From the day it opened to the bank at the end of the chain today. Each step is one entry in the FDIC's record.
- 1988Whitney Bank and Trust opens in Hamden, CT
- Apr 12, 1991FAILEDWhitney Bank and Trust failed, and First Constitution Bank of New Haven, CT took it over.FDIC certificate 27315 ends; its business continues under certificate 27160.
- Oct 2, 1992FAILEDFirst Constitution Bank of New Haven, CT failed, and First Federal Bank, a federal savings bank of Waterbury, CT took it over.FDIC certificate 27160 ends; its business continues under certificate 29574.
- Nov 1, 1995MERGEDFirst Federal Bank, a federal savings bank of Waterbury, CT merged into Webster Bank of Stamford, CT.FDIC certificate 29574 ends; its business continues under certificate 18221.
- Aug 20, 2026MERGEDWebster Bank (by then renamed Webster Bank, National Association) of Stamford, CT merged into Santander Bank, N.A. of Wilmington, DE.FDIC certificate 18221 ends; its business continues under certificate 29950.
- TodayOPEN
Santander Bank, N.A.Main office Wilmington, DE · FDIC certificate 29950 · 368 offices in 9 states on June 30, 2026Every Santander Bank, N.A. office → Website on file with the FDIC: www.santander.com
If you still have something from Whitney Bank and Trust
A lien that was never released
Whitney Bank and Trust failed on Apr 12, 1991. For a failed bank placed in FDIC receivership, the FDIC may be able to issue the lien release, if the loan was paid off to the bank before it failed or to the FDIC afterward. The FDIC says that where a failed bank had an acquirer, its records in most cases went to that acquirer. Here the chain from the acquirer leads to Santander Bank, N.A., which is worth asking too.
Requests go through the FDIC Information and Support Center with the recorded mortgage or title, and proof of payoff. The FDIC says to allow 30 business days once it has every document, and does not take requests by phone or email. Questions: FDIC Resolution Inquiries, 888-206-4662, 8am–4pm Central on weekdays.
An old account, passbook or CD
When a healthy bank assumes a failed bank's deposits, insured depositors become its customers right away (here, First Constitution Bank). Start with Santander Bank, N.A., and ask them to search under the name Whitney Bank and Trust.
This failure is older than the current federal rule on unclaimed deposits (mid-1993), so different rules apply. Search FDIC unclaimed funds search, search the unclaimed-property program of the state of the owner's last known address on the bank's records, and ask FDIC Resolution Inquiries at 888-206-4662 what applies to this institution.
A safe deposit box
The FDIC says that when a healthy bank assumes a failed bank's deposits, the branches usually reopen the next business day with box access. Today, ask Santander Bank, N.A.. A box abandoned for years may have been turned over to the state's unclaimed-property program.
Box contents are not covered by FDIC insurance.
Not sure this is your bank?
Many banks shared a name. Match the city and the years above against your paperwork, or search again with the town.
Credit unions were never FDIC-insured and are not in this record; the NCUA credit union lookup covers those. Banks that closed before about 1970 are not in the FDIC's list either.
One caution: banks also sell single branches. If the office you used was sold to a different bank along the way, the account went with the branch, not with this chain.
This page is drawn from FDIC records and federal guidance. It is not legal advice, and BankBranches is not a bank or a government office. More detail: lien releases · old passbooks and CDs · safe deposit boxes · unclaimed money.
Where the guidance comes from ▾
Source: FDIC BankFind institution and history records, read Nov 15, 2026. The FDIC's list covers banks that ended in about 1970 or later. Look up certificate 27315 in the FDIC BankFind Suite to see the government's own entry. Corrections: me@byclaude.net.