Liberty Case

Silicon Valley Bank shut down, largest failure since 2008 crisis

Diplomat Times(New York)- Startup-focused lender SVB Financial Group (SIVB.O) became the largest bank to fail since the 2008 financial crisis on Friday, in a sudden collapse that roiled global markets, left billions of dollars belonging to companies and investors stranded.

The U.S. rushed to seize the assets of Silicon Valley Bank on Friday after a run on the bank, the largest failure of a financial institution since Washington Mutual during the height of the financial crisis more than a decade ago.

Silicon Valley, the nation’s 16th largest, failed after depositors – mostly technology workers and venture capital-backed companies – began withdrawing their money as anxiety about the bank’s situation spread this week.

Silicon Valley was heavily exposed to tech industry and there is little chance of contagion in the banking sector similar to the chaos in the months leading up to the Great Recession more than a decade ago. Major banks have sufficient capital to avoid a similar situation, though the sector has been under pressure all week.

Bloomberg reported, that Becker sold $3.6 million of company stock under a trading plan on 27 February. The last month’s sale of 12,451 shares was the first time in more than a year that Becker had sold shares in parent company SVB Financial Group, according to regulatory filings. He filed the plan that allowed him to sell the shares on 26 January.

Greg Becker CEO/SVB sent a message to its employees acknowledging the “incredibly difficult” 48 hours leading up to its collapse on Friday, Reuters reported.

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Silicon Valley’s failure came with incredible speed, with some industry analysts on Friday suggesting it was a good company and still likely a wise investment. Silicon Valley executives were looking to raise capital early Friday or find additional investors in the company. But trading in its shares had been halted before the opening bell due to extreme volatility.

The bank had $209 billion in assets and $175.4 billion in deposits at the time of failure, the FDIC said in a statement. It was unclear how much of deposits was above the $250,000 insurance limit at the moment, but previous regulatory reports showed that much of Silicon Valley Bank’s deposits were above that limit.

The FDIC said deposits below the $250,000 limit would be available Monday morning.

Who is the owner of Silicon Valley Bank 

Greg Becker is president and CEO of SVB Financial Group.
The options exercise paired with the stock sale meant that Becker’s stock ownership in SVB remained unchanged. Both transactions were made through a trust that he controls, using a trading plan that he had set up on Jan. 26, according to the filing.

Under Greg’s leadership, SVB has achieved considerable growth. SVB joined the S&P 500 in 2018 and has been named one of the best banks in America, one of the fastest growing public companies in the US, and one of the best places to work.

SVB has been included in the Bloomberg Gender-Equality Index for the last five years and is consistently among the Top Corporate Philanthropists in its headquarters’ region. Working with employees, clients, and partners, Greg has also prioritized investments and initiatives to increase diversity and inclusion at SVB and across the innovation ecosystem, foster economic development and support community well-being.

Greg Becker live in California , His wife name Julie Backer. He has married to Julie for over 20 year.

Greg Becker CEO/SVB sent a message to its employees acknowledging the “incredibly difficult” 48 hours leading up to its collapse on Friday, Reuters reported.

Source : Reuters/Bloomberg

North Korea warns US against shooting down its missile tests

Diplomat Times (SEOUL)- North Korea said any move to shoot down one of its test missiles would be considered a declaration of war and blamed a joint military exercise between the United States and South Korea for growing tensions, state media KCNA said on Tuesday.

The statement on Tuesday by Kim Yo Jong, the powerful sister of North Korean leader Kim Jong Un, cited a South Korean media report that said the United States planned to shoot down Pyongyang’s intercontinental ballistic missiles (ICBMs) if the weapons were test-launched towards the Pacific Ocean.

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The US and its allies have never shot down North Korean ballistic missiles — typically launched at steep angles to avoid neighboring countries — but the question has drawn new scrutiny since Pyongyang suggested it would fire more missiles over Japan.

Kim Yo Jong said Pyongyang would see any US military action against its strategic weapons tests as a “declaration of war”.

“The Pacific Ocean does not belong to the dominion of the US or Japan,” she said.

The fiery rhetoric from North Korea comes as the US and South Korea restore and scale up their joint military drills following a record number of missile tests by Pyongyang last year.

The US deployed a B-52 bomber for a joint drill with South Korean fighter jets on Monday in what South Korea’s defence ministry said was a show of force against North Korea’s nuclear and missile threats.

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The US and South Korean militaries are also preparing to revive their largest exercises later this month.

The field training exercises, known as Warrior Shield FTX, will include amphibious landings and run alongside the Freedom Shield exercise, a computer-simulated command post training aimed at strengthening defence and response capabilities.

Kim Yo Jong warned on Tuesday that North Korea was ready to take “overwhelming” actions against the drills.

(This story has not been edited by Diplomat Times and is auto-generated from Reuters)