Silicon Valley Bank’s clients went to physical branches on Friday searching for answers as the bank rapidly collapsed.
Tech founders and execs were undeterred by the inclement weather on Friday, as they crowded the doors of Silicon Valley Bank locations across the Bay Area, in hopes of getting their money and answers to their critical questions.
Regulators shuttered SVB and seized its deposits in the second-largest U.S. banking failure in history and the largest since the 2008 financial crisis.
Thousands of startups have long counted on SVB for everyday banking services, and the firm’s sudden collapse raised imminent concerns about how clients would pay their bills and their employees.
Some company leaders went to the bank’s branches to try and get help. While waiting outside in long lines, they found camaraderie with those in the same boat and shared stories of their misfortunes.‘Hoping for better news Monday’
SVB had 17 branches in California and Massachusetts, and the FDIC said in its press release that “the main office and all branches of Silicon Valley Bank will reopen on Monday, March 13, 2023.”
The regulator said that all uninsured deposits will be accessible Monday. But the FDIC only insures deposits of up to $250,000 per client and, as a bank primarily serving businesses, roughly 95% of SVB’s deposits are uninsured.
In Santa Clara on Friday morning, SVB customers arrived frustrated and angry, many donning blank and tired faces.
A group of four men gathered near the doors. Some had tears in their eyes.
One of the men, who asked not to be named, told CNBC he’d been banking with SVB since 2018 and never expected to see this happen. He said most of his money was tied up in the bank. Eventually, the man let out a soft sob, apologizing as he excused himself.
