Skip to main content

Bank shares recover despite the fears of crisis.

 

Index
Shares in First Republic Bank rose 27 per cent, or $8.42, to close at $39.63, a day after falling 62 per cent, as investors regained some confidence following the panic unleashed by the failure of two lenders, Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, in three days. Those hit hardest by the sell-off this week partially recovered. Lenders clawed back some of their losses despite Moody's downgrading the sector, a move the agency said was designed "to reflect the rapid deterioration in the operating environment" after bank runs at SVB, Signature and Silvergate, another bank which last week said that it would wind down. Over the weekend, US regulators scrambled to pull together an emergency rescue package to ensure customers of SVB and Signature had access to their money.

"To shore up the wider system, the Federal Reserve also announced a funding programme to ensure lenders can meet the needs of all their depositors. On Monday, President Biden sought to reassure Americans that the banking system was "safe", adding that investors in failed institutions would "lose their money. His intervention set the stage for a rout of financial stocks. Even shares in Charles Schwab, with a market value of more than $100 billion, fell 11.6 per cent on Monday. Shares in Charles Schwab rose 9.2 per cent, or $4.77, to close at $56.68.

Trades by Citadel, run by the billionaire Ken Griffin, are closely watched by investors. Having taken control of SVB last week, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation is looking at sales of its assets. The Financial Times reported that heavyweight investment groups, including Carlyle Group, KKR, Blackstone, Apollo Global Management, and Ares Management, are examining SVB's loan book for potential purchases. The decision was "not crypto related," the state's Department of Financial Services said.

The new boss of Silicon Valley Bridge Bank, formed by US officials to manage SVB's deposits and assets, encouraged customers to shift money back into its accounts. "The number one thing you can do to support the future of this institution is to help us rebuild our deposit base," Tim Mayopoulos told customers, "both by leaving deposits. The crisis that led to the rescue sale of Silicon Valley Bank's UK arm to HSBC for a symbolic £1 raises questions about how small lenders in the UK are supervised, the Commons Treasury committee has warned. The committee yesterday opened a post-mortem into the unravelling of SVB's British arm, with its chairwoman, Harriett Baldwin, sending a series of written questions to Andrew Bailey, governor of the Bank of England, and Andrew Griffith, the City minister, seeking more information on their handling of SVB UK.

Bailey and other Bank officials have also been summoned to appear before the committee on March 28 to give evidence on the crisis. This led to a frantic weekend of talks as regulators and ministers raced to find a solution that would avoid causing chaos for the thousands of technology and venture capital firms that are customers of SVB UK. A deal with HSBC was reached in the early hours of Monday.

www.sba.tax

Comments

Cloud Bookkeeping

US FED rate rise.

  The US Federal Reserve officials have indicated that they plan to resume increasing interest rates to control inflation in the world's biggest economy. During the June meeting, the Federal Open Market Committee reached a consensus to keep interest rates stable for the time being to evaluate whether further tightening of policy would be necessary. However, the majority of the committee anticipates that additional rate increases will be required in the future. The minutes of the meeting have recently been made public. According to the minutes, most participants believed maintaining the federal funds rate at 5 to 5.25 per cent was appropriate or acceptable, despite some individuals wanting to raise the acceleration due to slow progress in cooling inflation. Although Fed forecasts predicted a mild recession starting later in the year, policymakers faced challenges in interpreting data that showed a tight job market and only slight improvements in inflation. Additionally, officials gr...

EU business slide.

  S&P Global’s flash eurozone composite purchasing managers’ index, a key gauge of business conditions for the manufacturing and services sector, fell 1 point to 47.1, figures showed yesterday. That is its lowest level since November 2020 and the fourth consecutive month below the crucial 50 mark separating growth from contraction. One of the few bright spots in the survey was that companies in all sectors reported a slight easing of cost pressures, price growth and supply chain constraints. However, prices charged for goods and services still rose at the sixth fastest rate since such data started in 2002. Jobs growth increased marginally from October but remained low compared with the past 18 months. Following a few months of falling price pressure in manufacturing and services, the October print shows an overall stabilisation said Jens Eisenschmidt, chief European economist at Morgan Stanley. However, German businesses, at the hub of Europe’s energy crisis, reported that manu...

India- UK trade deal.

  According to India's top trade official, talks with the UK regarding a trade agreement are progressing well, despite obstacles related to temporary work visas and the opening up industries like automotive and spirits. The Commerce and Industry Minister, Piyush Goyal, explained that India is seeking transition periods or greater market access in specific sectors due to its economy, which is slightly larger than the UK's and expected to outgrow it in the coming decades. If a trade deal is reached, it would be one of the most significant agreements for Britain since leaving the EU, and it would also be necessary for India, which surpassed the UK as the fifth-largest economy last year. Goyal stated that India aims to increase its economy from $3.5tn to $35tn by 2047, the country's centenary of independence. According to officials and diplomats in India, talks about a proposed trade deal may be finished by early September, just in time for the G20 summit in New Delhi. Nigel Hu...