The Bank of England (BoE) has announced that Silicon Valley Bank UK Limited (SVB UK) will be sold to HSBC UK Bank Plc (HSBC). This is being carried out under the aegis of the Special Resolution Regime (SRR) — a bespoke pre-insolvency regime applicable to failing banks1 — set forth in the Banking Act 2009 (the Act).
GIVEN THE RECENT NEWS REGARDING SILICON VALLEY BANK, RICHARD OMAN LOOKS AT THE IMPACT THAT LENDER INSOLVENCY HAS ON LOAN FACILITIES AND WHAT BORROWERS AND LENDERS NEED TO CONSIDER.
BACKGROUND
On Friday March 10, 2023, the Bank of England moved to put the UK arm of Silicon Valley Bank into insolvency after it applied for £1.8bn of liquidity as its parent company was collapsing. The situation remains fluid, and the following Q&A reflects our understanding as of Sunday, March 12.
UK resolution authority and powers
On March 10, 2023, the Bank of England published the following statement regarding Silicon Valley Bank UK Limited (SVB UK):
This alert provides background on the failure of Silicon Valley Bank and explains significant recent developments, including the subsequent failure of Signature Bank and the U.S. government’s announcement that the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) will make whole all depositors of both institutions. This alert also describes the new program simultaneously announced by the Federal Reserve to provide additional liquidity to the banking industry.
Run on Silicon Valley Bank
Following the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), there are many questions being asked across the financial and tech space: what caused the bank to collapse? Could it have been prevented? What could the bank itself and indeed its 40,000 customers - mostly in tech – done differently to mitigate risk and minimise impact.
Given SVB’s involvement in funding many fledgling tech start-ups and scale-ups, we look into what the Bank’s failure could have spelled for the viability of these businesses, and indeed the customers they supply into.
The collapse will have far reaching ramifications for many businesses and financial institutions across the UK
On Friday 10 March 2023 it was announced that the Bank of England intends to place Silicon Valley Bank UK Limited (SBV UK) into a Bank Insolvency Procedure following the collapse of its parent company, Silicon Valley Bank, in the US.
Here is the latest regarding Silicon Valley Bank (“SVB”) and Signature Bank as of Sunday, March 12th according to the FDIC. We expect to learn more by COB Monday, March 13th:
Depositors will have access to all of their money starting Monday, March 13.
A lot of ink has been spilled in the last 72 hours regarding the historic developments involving Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. Our quick summary of the facts and law is below. Cadwalader will continue to monitor these developments closely and will update you with additional insights.
As we continue to work with clients regarding the Bank of England’s statement as to its intention to apply to place Silicon Valley Bank UK Limited (SVB UK) into a bank insolvency procedure, please see below for responses to some frequently asked questions surrounding the current situation. Please note that this list covers general topics related to rapidly changing circumstances.
On Sunday, March 12th, the Treasury Department, the FDIC, and the Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System (Fed) (the Agencies) announced that the New York Department of Financial Services had appointed the FDIC as receiver for Signature Bank, which was closed on March 11th. Subsequently, the FDIC announced that it had transferred substantially all of the assets and all of the deposits of Signature Bank to the newly created Signature Bridge Bank, N.A. Early on March 13th, the FDIC announced a similar transfer of assets and deposits to Silicon Valley Bank, N.A., another n