This weekend the Silicon Valley Bankor BLS. This event triggered one of the most resounding bank panics in recent times, affecting thousands in particular Startup and venture capital funds. It has even had an effect on cryptocurrencies.

In the United States there were fears of a contagion effect leading to the collapse of other banking institutions. The collapse of the US entity is already considered the largest bank failure since the Great Recession and one of the most significant in the history of the United States.

The bankruptcy of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) tens of billions of dollars blocked deposited there by start-ups and private equity funds.

What happened to SVB?

Silicon Valley Bank was a subsidiary of SVB Financial Group and had a large number among his clients Startup and venture capital funds. Based in Santa Clara, California, the bank is the 16th largest lender in the country. At the end of 2022 it was approx assets of approximately $209 billion and deposits worth about $175.4 billion, according to Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (CFSD) data.

Last Thursday, Silicon Valley Bank announced a large capital increase of $ 1,750 million of which the end faced losses of $1,800 million that the entity had previously recorded on the sale of a portfolio of fixed-income securities backed by mortgages of approximately $21,000 million.

On the same day, the bank’s shares plummeted by 60%, sparking a wave of investors: In 24 hours, $42,000 million was generated losses of 68%.

California banking regulators closed SVB on Friday and appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as a trustee to protect depositors. SVB clients will have access to all their deposits from Monday and regulators have introduced a new mechanism to give banks access to emergency funds.

“Americans can rely on the banking system is safePresident Joe Biden said from the Roosevelt Room. “Your deposits will be there when they need them.”

“I am going to ask Congress and banking regulators to strengthen the rules for banks so that this kind of bank failure is less likely to happen again,” Biden added on social networks.