Former Charleston Bank Officers, Directors Sued Over Losses

The U.S. government is suing some of the former leaders of the now-closed Atlantic Bank & Trust in Charleston.

The Post and Courier of Charleston reported that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. wants to recover more than $9 million the government lost when it closed the bank in 2011.

The lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court names seven former directors, including two executive officers, and accuses them of negligence and breach of fiduciary duty.

The lawsuit focuses on 22 loans totaling nearly $19 million that were approved between June 2008 and April 2009, when the real estate and banking industries were reeling from the Great Recession.

An attorney for some of the former directors says it’s unfair to try to hold the leaders personally responsible for the loans.