The first banks in Missouri, the Bank of St. Louis (established in 1816) and the Bank of Missouri (I817), had both failed by the time Missouri became a state, and the paper notes they had distributed proved worthless. Not until 1837 did the Missouri state government again permit a bank within its borders, and then only after filling its charter with elaborate restrictions. The Bank of Missouri, chartered for 20 years, kept its reputation for sound banking by issuing notes bearing the portrait of US Senator Thomas Hart Benton, nicknamed "Old Bullion" because of his extreme fiscal conservatism. In 2002, 385 insured banks were operating in Missouri, 303 of which were state-chartered. The state's insured banks had assets totaling $77.5 billion.
As of 2002, commercial lenders in metropolitan areas of Missouri were negatively affected by softened commercial real estate markets. Past-due loan levels remained moderate among most community banks (those with assets of less than $1 billion). Net interest margins (NIMs) (the difference between the lower rates offered to savers and the higher rates charged on loans) declined in the 1990s, due to strong loan and funding competition, in addition to depopulation trends in rural areas. The lowering of interest rates in 2001/02 by the Federal Reserve led to NIM fluctuations, but did not signal an end to overall NIM decline.