Sept. 19 (Bloomberg) -- Irwin Financial Corp.’s bank units in Kentucky and Indiana, with $2.5 billion in deposits and offices in nine states, were closed by regulators, pushing the tally of failed U.S. lenders this year to 94.

Irwin Union Bank based in Louisville was closed by the Office of Thrift Supervision and Columbus-based Irwin Union Bank and Trust Co. was shut by the Indiana Department of Financial Institutions, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said yesterday in a statement. First Financial Bank of Hamilton, Ohio, agreed to assume the deposits and take over 27 offices, the FDIC said.

“Checks drawn on the institutions will continue to be processed,” the FDIC said. “Loan customers should continue to make their payments as usual.”

Regulators this year have closed the most banks since the savings-and-loan crisis of the early 1990s as losses mount from soured real-estate loans. The FDIC board this month will consider steps to replenish its deposit insurance fund, which has been drained by failures and fell to $10.4 billion as of June 30. Irwin’s closing will cost $850 million, the FDIC said.

First Financial Bank entered into a loss-share agreement with the FDIC on about $2.5 billion of $3.2 billion of assets, the agency said. The company said the acquisition of Irwin Union will expand its Indiana branch network to 49 locations.

Irwin Union had offices in Arizona, California, Indiana, Kentucky, Michigan, Missouri, Nevada, New Mexico and Utah, according to the company’s Web site.

Federal Reserve and Indiana state officials issued an order Sept. 15 requiring Irwin Financial to boost capital and trim its dependence on certain types of deposits by this month, the company said in a regulatory filing.

“There is no realistic prospect of achieving the required capital levels,” the company said. Irwin “cannot achieve the requisite reduction in reliance on the designated deposits.”

The purchase doesn’t include non-performing assets, real estate owned by the bank and loans for acquisition, development and construction, First Financial said yesterday in the statement.

To contact the reporter on this story: Alison Vekshin in Washington at avekshin@bloomberg.net.

Last Updated: September 19, 2009 00:01 EDT