Counterfeit cashier's checks drawn on Independent Bank, Memphis, Tennessee, are reportedly in circulation

Independent Bank, Memphis, Tennessee, has contacted the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) to report that fraudulent cashier's checks are in circulation.

The counterfeit items display a routing number of 213532122, which is not the proper routing number for Independent Bank. The counterfeit checks are markedly dissimilar from the authentic checks. The authentic checks are grey and the bank's logo of an "i" inside a red circle appears in the upper-left corner of the check. The counterfeit checks are white, and do not have a logo. The authentic checks reflect the actual office on Poplar Avenue, while the counterfeit items show an address on Union Avenue. Copies of a counterfeit item and an authentic cashier's check (VOID) are attached for your review.

Any information you have concerning this matter should be brought to the attention of:

Eddie Grubbs
Senior Vice President and Security Officer
Independent Bank
5050 Poplar Avenue, Suite 110
Memphis, Tennessee 38157
Telephone: (901) 844-0321
Fax: (901) 844-0383
Email: eddie@i-bankonline.com

Information about these instruments may be forwarded to the FDIC's Cyber Fraud and Financial Crimes Section, 550 17th Street, N.W., Room F-4004, Washington, D.C. 20429, or transmitted electronically to alert@fdic.gov. Information related to federal deposit insurance or consumer issues should be submitted to the FDIC using an online form that can be accessed at http://www2.fdic.gov/starsmail/index.asp.

For your reference, FDIC Special Alerts may be accessed from the FDIC's Web site at www.fdic.gov/news/news/SpecialAlert/2005/index.html. To learn how to automatically receive FDIC Special Alerts through e-mail, please visit www.fdic.gov/about/subscriptions/index.html .

Michael J. ZamorskiDirector
Division of Supervision and Consumer Protection