US bank trouble heralds end of dollar reserve system

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In: Asia, Finance

NEW YORK – The US banking system is broken. That doesn’t portend more high-profile failures like Credit Suisse. The central banks will keep moribund institutions on life support. But the era of dollar-based reserves and floating exchange rates that began on August 15, 1971, when the US severed the link between the dollar and gold, […]Continue Reading

US bank cracks weakening global financial system

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Silicon Valley in California has long been the recipient of investments from China and this trend is now growing, along with the opportunities that blockchain presents. Photo: iStock/NASA

US regulators’ swift reaction to the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and two other lenders partially restored calm to markets, but concerns remain over the stability of the global financial system. The government is racing to orchestrate a US$30 billion rescue of First Republic Bank by the nation’s largest financial institutions after the California lender’s […]Continue Reading

Sifting fact from fear in SVB failure

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In: Asia, Business, Finance

Silicon Valley Bank, which catered to the tech industry for three decades, collapsed on March 10, 2023, after the Santa Clara, California-based lender suffered from an old-fashioned bank run. State regulators seized the bank and made the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation its receiver. SVB, as it’s known, was the biggest US lender to fail since […]Continue Reading

In SVB collapse, Asia sees 1997 all over again

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In: Asia, Finance
A mournful Thai holds a Thai baht note. Photo: NurPhoto via AFP Forum/Anusak Laowilas

To understand the Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) collapse spooking markets, look no further than events in Jakarta. The Indonesian rupiah’s 3.2% drop since February 1 demonstrates how quickly Asia has resigned itself to the fact that the US Federal Reserve isn’t done tightening. Another batch of too-strong-for-Fed-comfort US employment figures in February only increased the […]Continue Reading

Feds try to stop bank crisis of their own making

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NEW YORK – US bank regulators Sunday announced a massive response to last week’s run on Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) and the risk of copycat runs against other regional banks. The Federal Reserve will provide one-year loans against banks’ security portfolios through a new Bank Term Funding Program, eliminating the risk that banks might be […]Continue Reading