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Silicon Valley Bank’s Assets Seized By US Regulators

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2 years ago

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Silicon Valley Bank

The assets of one of Silicon Valley’s top banks were seized by regulators on Friday, marking the largest failure of a U.S. financial institution since the height of the financial crisis nearly 15 years ago.

Silicon Valley Bank, the nation’s 16th-largest bank, failed this week after depositors rushed to withdraw funds amid concerns about the bank’s health. After the failure of Washington Mutual in 2008, it was the second-largest bank failure in US history.

The bank primarily served technology workers and venture capital-backed businesses, including some of the industry’s most well-known brands.

“This is an extinction-level event for startups,” Garry Tan, CEO of Y Combinator, launched Airbnb, DoorDash, and Dropbox and has referred hundreds of entrepreneurs to the bank, told the Associated Press.

“I’ve heard from hundreds of our founders asking for advice on how to get through this. They’re wondering, ‘Do I have to furlough my employees?'”

There appeared to be little chance of the chaos spreading throughout the banking sector, as it did in the months preceding the Great Recession. The largest banks were most likely to cause an economic meltdown to having strong balance sheets and ample capital.

Silicon Valley Bank's Assets Seized by US Regulators

Silicon Valley Bank customers

According to the bank’s website, nearly half of the U.S. technology and healthcare companies that went public last year after receiving early funding from venture capital firms were Silicon Valley Bank customers.

The bank also boasted of its connections to leading technology companies such as Shopify, ZipRecruiter, and Andreesson Horowitz, one of the top venture capital firms.

Tan estimates that nearly one-third of Y Combinator startups will be unable to make payroll within the next month if they cannot access their funds.

Roku, an Internet TV provider, was one of the victims of the bank’s demise. It disclosed in a regulatory filing on Friday that Silicon Valley Bank held approximately 26% of its cash, or $487 million.

Roku stated that its deposits with SVB were largely uninsured and did not know “to what extent” it could recover them.

As part of the seizure, California bank regulators and the FDIC transferred the bank’s assets to the Deposit Insurance Bank of Santa Clara, a newly formed institution. On Monday, the new bank will begin paying out insured deposits. The FDIC and California regulators intend to sell the remaining assets to make other depositors whole.

Silicon Valley Bank's Assets Seized by US Regulators

Attempting to raise capital

The banking sector has been in turmoil all week, with shares falling by double digits. Then, on Friday, news of Silicon Valley Bank’s troubles pushed shares of almost all financial institutions even lower.

The failure struck with lightning speed. According to some industry analysts, the bank is still a good company and a wise investment. Meanwhile, executives at Silicon Valley Bank were attempting to raise capital and find new investors. However, extreme volatility halted trading in the bank’s shares before the stock market opened.

The FDIC decided to close the bank shortly before noon. Notably, as is customary, the agency did not wait until the end of the business day. The FDIC could not immediately find a buyer for the bank’s assets, indicating how quickly depositors cashed out.

Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen is “watching closely,” according to the White House. The administration attempted to reassure the public that the banking system is in much better shape than it was during the Great Recession.

“Our banking system is fundamentally different than it was a decade ago,” said Cecilia Rouse, chair of the White House Council of Economic Advisers. “The reforms implemented at the time provide the kind of resilience that we’d like to see.”

After the value of mortgage-backed securities linked to ill-advised housing loans collapsed in 2007, the world experienced the worst financial crisis since the Great Depression. The Wall Street panic caused the demise of Lehman Brothers, a firm founded in 1847. Because major banks were so intertwined, the crisis caused a cascading breakdown in the global financial system, putting millions out of work.

According to the FDIC, Silicon Valley Bank, based in Santa Clara, California, had $209 billion in total assets at the time of its failure. It was unclear how many of its deposits exceeded the $250,000 insurance limit, but previous regulatory reports showed that many accounts did.

On Thursday, the bank announced plans to raise $1.75 billion to strengthen its capital position. This frightened investors and shares fell 60%. They fell even further before the opening of the Nasdaq, where the bank’s shares were traded.

As the name suggests, Silicon Valley Bank was a major financial conduit between the technology sector, startups, and tech workers. If a startup founder wanted to find new investors or go public, establishing a relationship with a bank was thought to make good business sense.

Founded in 1983 during a poker game by co-founders Bill Biggerstaff and Robert Medearis, the bank leveraged its Silicon Valley roots to become a financial cornerstone in the tech industry.

Bill Tyler, CEO of TWG Supply in Grapevine, Texas, said he first noticed something was wrong when one of his employees texted him at 6:30 a.m. Friday to complain about not receiving their paychecks.

TWG, which has only 18 employees, had already sent the check money to a payroll services provider that used Silicon Valley Bank. Tyler was trying to figure out how to pay his employees.

“We’re waiting on about $27,000,” he explained. “It’s already a late payment. It’s already an awkward situation. I don’t want to ask any of my employees, “Hey, can you wait until next week to get paid?”

Silicon Valley Bank’s ties to the technology sector exacerbated its problems. After a growth surge during the pandemic, technology stocks have taken a beating in the last 18 months, and layoffs have spread throughout the industry. Venture capital funding is also on the decline.

At the same time, the Federal Reserve’s fight against inflation and an aggressive series of interest rate hikes to cool the economy weighed heavily on the bank.

The value of generally stable bonds begins to fall as the Fed raises its benchmark interest rate. That is not usually a problem, but when depositors become concerned and withdraw their funds, banks may be forced to sell those bonds before they mature to cover the departure.

That is precisely what happened to Silicon Valley Bank, which was forced to sell $21 billion in highly liquid assets to cover the unexpected withdrawals. It suffered a $1.8 billion loss on the sale.

Ashley Tyrner, CEO of FarmboxRx, said she had spoken with several friends whose businesses are venture-backed. She described them as “beyond themselves” after the bank’s failure. Tyrner’s chief operating officer attempted to withdraw funds from her company on Thursday but could not do so in time.

“One friend said they couldn’t make payroll today and cried because they had to notify 200 employees,” Tyrner said.

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Forced Sale Google Chrome Could Fetch $20 Billion

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4 hours ago

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2024-11-21

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Sale Google Chrome

Antitrust officials in the US could force the sale of Google’s Chrome browser for up to $20 billion, demonstrating the tremendous worth of the world’s most popular web browser.

Bloomberg Intelligence attributes Chrome’s projected worth to its more than 3 billion monthly active users. The US Department of Justice is preparing to request a federal judge order the browser’s separation from Google’s parent company, Alphabet.

Chrome’s worth comes from its overwhelming 61% market share and its crucial role in Google’s advertising ecosystem. User data enables businesses to better target adverts, and the browser also acts as an important distribution mechanism for Google’s AI technologies.

Industry analysts think it may be difficult to find a suitable buyer. While tech behemoths like Amazon could finance the purchase, they would likely face regulatory scrutiny.

AI businesses, such as OpenAI, may emerge as more viable contenders. They could potentially leverage Chrome to broaden their reach and develop an advertising business.

“It’s not directly monetizable,” one analyst told Bloomberg. “It functions as a gateway to other things. It’s unclear how you would assess that in terms of pure revenue generation.”

Google opposes prospective sales, claiming that they will hamper innovation. The firm does not break out Chrome’s revenue individually in its financial filings, even though the browser’s user data plays an important part in the company’s principal revenue stream, advertising.

The DOJ’s suggestion follows Judge Amit Mehta’s August decision that Google had illegally monopolized the search industry. The judge will consider the recommended remedies at a two-week hearing in April 2024, with a final judgment due in August 2025.

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Bitcoin Has Set a New Record And Is Approaching $100,000.

Published

12 hours ago

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2024-11-21

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Bitcoin

(VOR News) – Bitcoin broke beyond the $98,000 mark for the first time on Thursday as investors awaited Donald Trump’s second term as president. All of this happened during the day. As such, cryptocurrency has reached a significant turning point.

According to Coin Metrics, the top cryptocurrency was trading at $97,541.61 during the most recent trading session. Merchants provided this information. This suggests a price gain of more than three percent during the previous trading session.

When the period began, Bitcoin peaked at $98,367.00.

During the premarket trading session, MicroStrategy, a platform that facilitates cryptocurrency foreign exchange trading and serves as a bitcoin proxy, saw a 13% gain. Coinbase, on the other hand, had a 2% rise during that period. Furthermore, all of these increases occurred simultaneously.

The market value of Mara Holdings increased by 9%, which helped raise the valuation of mining companies overall. This was among the factors that led to the total rise.

Because of the widespread belief that President Trump will usher in a new era of prosperity for cryptocurrencies, one marked by more favorable laws and the possible creation of a national strategic bitcoin reserve, the price of Bitcoin has been rising steadily this month.

The most recent change brought about by the increase was the consequence of higher financing rates and more open interest in the futures market during Asian trading hours. The rise was the catalyst for this change. This action was prompted by the ensuing rush.

Throughout its lifespan, this legislation was the catalyst for this change for a variety of reasons. At the same time, spot market premiums decreased, according to CryptoQuant statistics. All of this happened at the same time.

Furthermore, a number of short liquidations have been sparked by the recent spikes in Bitcoin’s price, which has caused the price to rise overnight. As a result, the price has gone up much more. As a result, the total number of short liquidations has increased.

According to CoinGlass, these liquidations have effectively produced more than $88 million in capital during the last 24 hours.

Rob Ginsberg, an analyst at Wolfe Research, noted in a study released on Wednesday that “historically, following previous movements of this magnitude, Bitcoin has either entered a consolidation phase or disregarded the overbought condition as investors accumulate.” This phrase relates to the fact that this particular move has happened before.

Ginsberg stated this in reference to the evolution of Bitcoin over time.

Ginsberg’s answer makes reference to Bitcoin’s propensity to go through a period of consolidation. The comment also made reference to this.

He said, “Considering we are emerging from an extended consolidation phase and the price has reached a new high, it suggests that the pursuit is underway.”

The crucial psychological milestone of $100,000 is expected to be reached in the upcoming weeks, and this breakthrough could happen as early as Thursday. It seems likely that this level will be reached. There is a chance that this new development will take place.

This task will be carried out against the backdrop of this historical era. In addition, if Trump were to win a second term, federal budget deficits would increase, inflation would likely increase, and the dollar’s position in international affairs would change.

The administration that Trump would run during his presidency would be responsible for these consequences. All of these characteristics would positively impact the value of Bitcoin as a currency if they were taken into account in the order that they are presented.

The price of bitcoin had risen by more than 130% by the beginning of 2024.

SOUREC: CNBC

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Target Struggles in the Third Quarter: Offers Tempered Holiday Outlook and Price Cuts

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1 day ago

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2024-11-20

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Target

(VOR News) – Target experienced a modest rise in sales during the third quarter; nevertheless, profitability declined due to reduced customer spending attributed to inflation and adverse effects from the ongoing costs associated with the October dockworker strike.

Despite ongoing consumer expenditure in the United States, but with more prudence, the Minneapolis retailer did not meet Wall Street’s forecasts for the quarter and similarly disappointed industry analysts with its projections for the final quarter of the year.

Target’s reduction in prices for Christmas products, including a Thanksgiving promotion that lowered the cost of the holiday feast relative to last year’s total, raises concerns about disappointing quarterly results.

Target’s latest quarter sharply contrasts with competitor Walmart, which reported another quarter of exceptional revenues on Tuesday and provided positive forecasts for the forthcoming holiday season. Amazon disclosed last month that its quarterly profits had risen. Amazon surpassed projections with an 11% rise in quarterly revenue.

Target fell over 21% on Wednesday morning.

Chairman and CEO Brian Cornell stated, “We encountered distinct challenges and financial constraints that impacted our overall performance.”

FactSet reports that Target’s net income for the quarter ended November 2 was $854 million, or $1.85 per share, markedly below the anticipated $2.30 and a decline from $971 million, or $2.10 per share, in the same quarter of the previous year.

Despite an increase in sales to $25.67 billion from $25.4 billion the previous year, they fell short of Wall Street’s projections.

Target announced that for the fiscal fourth quarter, it anticipates earnings per share to fall between $1.85 to $2.45. This amount is below the $2.65 per share forecast by analysts surveyed by FactSet.

The retailer announced that in the third quarter, its comparable sales, derived from stores and digital platforms operational for a minimum of one year, increased by 0.3%.

This is inferior to the second quarter’s 2% growth. Several months of decreases, comprising a 3.7% reduction in the first quarter and a 4.4% reduction in the company’s final quarter of 2023, were counterbalanced by the rise in the April–June period.

Cosmetics sales rose by almost 6%, whilst food, beverages, and necessities such as shampoo experienced gains in the low single digits relative to the previous year.

The positive attributes were negligible. Target’s quarterly customer traffic rose by 2.4%. Target officials report that this represents an increase of 10 million sales transactions compared to the previous year. Digital comparable sales rose by 10.8% due to a 20% enhancement in same-day delivery facilitated by the Target Circle loyalty program and double-digit growth in its drive-up service.

Target encountered several challenges.

Target’s food and beverage sales constitute under 25% of overall sales, indicating a greater dependence on luxury items such as apparel and accessories.

Target management acknowledged that the company, similar to other retailers, had to redirect specific items due to the strike of 45,000 dockworkers, the first occurrence since 1977.

The accumulation of commodities in warehouses escalated operational expenses and diminished corporate earnings.

The commitment by President-elect Donald Trump to impose elevated import tariffs is resulting in difficulties for Target and other enterprises. Trump advocates for a 60% tariff on Chinese imports and a 20% levy on all other products. Cornell stated that, despite monitoring trends meticulously, the corporation has prioritized diversifying its supplier network.

“Currently, there exists considerable uncertainty regarding future developments, and we will exercise our flexibility to adapt as necessary,” he stated on the call.

Buyers remain apprehensive due to ongoing uncertainty, as prices, albeit decreasing, remain elevated compared to a few years prior.

“They are exhibiting significant patience, pursuing promotions and outstanding value on essential pantry items,” Cornell stated during a conference call with reporters. “Over the year, they have consistently focused on discretionary categories and are practicing prudent shopping behaviors.”

Target officials indicated a decline in television purchases, although they expressed interest in incorporating candles, frames, and flowers into their home décor.

Target has been reducing prices to boost sales. Last spring, it reduced costs for numerous essentials, including milk and diapers. Almost fifty percent of the numerous goods offered this Christmas are priced below $20. Target is offering a Thanksgiving dinner bundle for four people at $20, which is $5 less than its 2023 Thanksgiving meal package.

SOURCE: USN

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