In recent weeks, Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank have become the largest banks to fail since the 2008 financial crisis, sending shockwaves through the U.S. banking system. The failure was only narrowly avoided for Ride iQ — a startup business based in Colorado — who were able to withdraw their money in a six-figure range before it was too late.
President Joe Biden sought to reassure the public on the safety of deposits, along with announcing a backstop and lending facility established by federal regulators. The Colorado Bankers Association reassured that this is an “outlier” among other banks across the US and CO.
The flurry of announcements regarding these bank failures has sparked political debate between both sides of the aisle. Democratic senators Michael Bennet and John Hickenlooper have been involved with briefings from administration officials concerning these particular bank failures, while GOP Rep. Lauren Boebert accused regulators of what she deemed as a bailout for investor protection (which has yet to be proven true). GOP Rep.
Patrick McHenry dubbed this as being “the first Twitter-fueled bank run”, referring to Boebert’s tweets about withdrawing her money from SVB as something which could potentially inspire others to do the same without necessarily being aware of all implications or facts surrounding it.
Democratic Rep. Brittany Pettersen urged swift action to prevent future bank failures and is working alongside fellow Financial Services Committee members for a Monday night briefing about Silicon Valley Bank’s circumstances; Pettersen seeks notification procedures should any similar situation arise again.
Ride iQ remind us that staying ahead of developments remains key when managing finances — especially if they pertain to large investments or amounts involved — with such important transactions requiring closer attention than what may otherwise be offered by regular day-to-day banking operations or activities related thereto.
As these events continue to unfold, one thing is for sure: Colorado’s startups are feeling the effects of Silicon Valley Bank’s meltdown. It remains to be seen what other impacts this event will have on businesses in the state, as well as throughout the US banking system.
In any case, we should all stay vigilant and pay close attention to our financial operations to ensure that we are not adversely impacted. It is also important that lawmakers and regulators continue to work together to prevent any similar issues from occurring in the future.