Silicon Valley Bank Loses $80B in Market Cap, Forced to Shut down, Sending Tremors Around the Tech World
Shares of Silicon Valley Bank’s parent company SVB Financial Group plummeted 60% on Thursday, another 20+% in after-hours trading, then a trading halt on Friday, wiping out more than $80 billion from its market capitalization, culminating with a shutdown by regulators and control by the FDIC.
Silicon Valley Bank lost $1.8 billion after selling $21 billion of US Treasuries and mortgage-backed securities amid rising interest rates. The bank had to also contend with shrinking customer deposits given the bank is notorious for extending lines of credit to venture capital firms, which many banks are hesitant to participate in.
The bank had publicly stated that they were taking on $500 million from private equity firm General Atlantic and would simultaneously conduct a $2.25 billion equity and debt offering to shore up its financial position.
The bank’s struggles have uprooted the venture capital market as the bank was one of the largest participants in the venture debt sector, providing loans to many technology and life sciences startups.
The focus now is on liquidity within the banking sector, and how it might impact the smaller companies that are dependent on lending and capital to get off the ground.
Greg Becker, the CEO of Silicon Valley Bank, tried to calm tech investors and startups during a Thursday Zoom call, urging them to “stay calm,” but to no avail.