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6 months out from SVB's failure, a bank president's optimism has waned

Sep 6, 2023
Pressure to keep more capital puts constraints on banks, says Laurie Stewart of Sound Community in Seattle.
Laurie Stewart, the head of Sound Community Bank in Seattle, says pressures to hold more capital will "impact our ability to serve clients and to be investable."
Courtesy Sound Community Bank

No more business as usual for the Fed

Jun 29, 2023
Technology that can cause banks to fail overnight could force the Federal Reserve to upgrade its infrastructure, while continuing basic regulation to prevent failures from occurring in the first place.
Silicon Valley Bank's problems wouldn’t have been solved by an instant Fed bailout, said Wharton professor Itamar Drechsler.
Patrick T. Fallon/AFP via Getty Images

A Fed president on remedies for inflation, banking supervision, and the possibility of recession

A conversation with Susan M. Collins, president of the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston.
Federal Reserve Bank of Boston Chair Susan Collins stands with "Marketplace Morning Report" host David Brancaccio in Washington, DC.
Meredith Garretson/Marketplace

Stress tests aim to reveal banks' weaknesses. More banks will probably have to run them.

Mar 22, 2023
But the probes can't uncover every problem before trouble erupts.
The Federal Reserve may have to modify its stress tests to account for the changing sources of stress on banks.
Kevin Dietsch/Getty Images

"Moral hazard" at banks isn't just a theoretical concern

According to Boston College's Patricia McCoy, data underscore concerns about the government's role in risk-taking at banks.
Data support the claim that too much government backing can incentivize banks to take more risks, says Boston College law professor Patricia McCoy.
Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Could the Fed's new emergency bank lending program encourage risky behavior?

The Fed's new program may incentivize banks to take more risks, says analyst Joseph Wang.
The Fed's freshly created Bank Term Funding Program could reduce the incentives for banks to follow good practices, says analyst Joseph Wang.
Mark Wilson/Getty Images

Did regulation fail in the recent bank failures?

Regulators likely failed to catch and act upon red flags at both failed banks, argues Wharton professor Peter Conti-Brown.
Regulators likely failed to curtail poor practices at Signature Bank (pictured) and Silicon Valley Bank, said Wharton professor Peter Conti-Brown.
Ed Jones/AFP via Getty Images

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Who's responsible for paying the failed banks’ depositors?

Mar 14, 2023
The money’s coming from a fund run by the FDIC that derives most of its revenue from banks.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, which insures bank deposits, said it will shoulder the load of covering deposits at the failed Silicon Valley and Signature banks.
Getty Images

Bank rules rollback contributed to SVB's failure, critics say

Mar 13, 2023
The rollback of Dodd-Frank reforms exempted many of the country's largest banks from stricter regulations put in place after 2008.
Customers line up to retrieve funds from a Silicon Valley Bank in Santa Clara, California, on Monday. President Joe Biden partially blamed the rollback of Dodd-Frank banking regulations for SVB's failure.
Justin Sullivan/Getty Images

New Trump administration rule limits large banks' ability to turn away business

Jan 15, 2021
Large banks can't deny services to businesses, like gun-makers and oil drillers, just based on what they do.
The rule prohibits large banks from refusing to lend to certain business sectors, after Republicans voiced frustration at what they saw as a reluctance by banks to finance gun-makers and energy firms.
Jim Watson/AFP via Getty Images