Historic Bank Collapse, Middle East Deal, and Inside the Oscar's Gift Bags

Silicon Valley Bank Shuttered

US regulators shut down Silicon Valley Bank yesterday in what is the second-largest failure of a financial institution in US history, following Washington Mutual during the height of the global financial crisis in 2008. Silicon Valley Bank, which caters to mostly technology workers and venture-backed companies, had roughly $209B in assets and $175B in deposits as of December. 

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. assumed control of Silicon Valley Bank via a new entity a day after depositors began withdrawing their money on fears of the bank's solvency, also known as a bank run (see 101). The bank's parent company's shares fell roughly 70% since it announced plans this week to raise $2.25B to shore up its balance sheet and offset nearly $2B in losses on asset sales. Trading halted yesterday after market volatility. Insured depositors will have access to their funds, typically up to $250K, Monday, the FDIC said. 

See how the country's 16th largest financial institution compares to other bank collapses here. Read a history of US bank failures here. 

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Bookkeeping

> The 2023 Oscar's gift bag is valued at approximately $125K. See what's inside it.
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Historybook: Civil rights leader Ralph Abernathy born (1926); Sir Alexander Fleming, scientist who discovered penicillin, dies (1955); Janet Reno confirmed as first female attorney general in the US (1993); Coordinated bombings kill 191 people aboard trains in Madrid (2004); COVID-19 declared a pandemic by World Health Organization (2020).