What happened to Silicon Valley Bank?

In the heart of Silicon Valley, a bank stood tall, serving as a financial backbone for the tech industry's most creative and forward-thinking businesses. Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) was a key player in the venture capital world, financing nearly half of all U.S. venture-backed healthcare and technology companies. From Airbnb to Pinterest, SVB's prestigious client roster was proof of its reputation as a reliable and trusted source of private banking, personal credit lines, and mortgages for tech entrepreneurs. But in a shocking turn of events, SVB collapsed, leaving behind $209 billion in assets and a void in the tech industry's financial landscape. In this article, we'll explore the rise and fall of SVB and its impact on the world of tech finance.

The collapse of SVB and its causes

In early March of 2023, SVB, a leading financial institution in the technology and life-science sectors, suffered a catastrophic collapse. This came after the bank's liabilities, heavily concentrated in the tech industry, incurred steep losses due to increased interest rates and a major downturn in growth.