“We want to make sure that the problems that affect one bank do not create contagion to others that are solid,” said the American Minister of Finance during an interview with CBS.

The Deposit Guarantee Agency (FDIC), an offshoot of the US government, took control of Silicon Valley Bank on Friday, on the verge of implosion under the effect of massive withdrawals from its customers.

If the big banks have so far been spared, several medium-sized or regional establishments unscrewed on the stock market on Friday, fled by worried investors.

This is particularly the case of the Californian First Republic, which dropped nearly 30% in two sessions, Thursday and Friday, or Signature Bank, cut by a third of its value since Wednesday evening.

The two establishments have a large proportion of companies in their portfolio of clients, whose deposits often exceed the maximum amount insured by the FDIC, or 250,000 dollars per depositor, which could push them to withdraw their funds.

Janet Yellen explained on Sunday that the government was working this weekend, with the FDIC, to "resolve" the situation of SVB, of which approximately 96% of the deposits are not covered by the refund guarantee of the FDIC.

“I am sure (the FDIC) is considering a wide range of solutions, which includes an acquisition” by another bank, said the Treasury Secretary.

A customer reads an announcement on the door of the headquarters of the American bank Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), March 10, 2023 in Santa Clara, California © NOAH BERGER / AFP

Virginia Democratic Senator Mark Warner said Sunday on the ABC channel that the announcement on Sunday of a takeover of SVB by a financial institution before the opening of Asian markets would be "the best solution".

Futures contracts on the flagship indices of the Tokyo and Hong Kong stock exchanges suggested an opening down by just under 2%.

No public rescue

Janet Yellen, on the other hand, ruled out a rescue of SVB via an injection of public money.

"During the financial crisis (of 2008), investors in large systemic banks", whose fall the authorities believe would pose a risk to the entire financial system, "were rescued" by the American government, a-t- she called back.

"We're not going to do it again."

In September 2008, to avoid a collapse of the financial system, the American authorities thus injected hundreds of billions of dollars into most of the big names in the market, funds that the government then recovered.

Several personalities from finance and the world of new technologies have pleaded since Friday for a bailout of SVB.

Because in addition to the stability of the banking system, many say they are concerned about the repercussions of the bankruptcy of SVB on the technological sector, American but also beyond.

SVB boasted of having "nearly half" of technology and life sciences companies financed by American investors.

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, March 10, 2023 in Washington © Brendan SMIALOWSKI / AFP

“Many of the depositors are small businesses that need to be able to access their funds to pay their bills and they employ tens of thousands of people” in the United States, noted Ms. Yellen.

"It's a problem and we're working with regulators to find a solution to it," she continued.

On Sunday, UK Finance Minister Jeremy Hunt said the fall of SVB posed a "serious risk" to Britain's tech sector.

Several entrepreneurs have also alerted, in recent hours, to a possible shock wave for Indian technology start-ups, some of which were SVB customers.

The turmoil of the SVB saga has also spread in the middle of cryptocurrencies.

The digital currency USDC, said to be "stable" because theoretically pegged to the dollar, has thus fallen since Friday after its creator, Circle, announced that it had left 3.3 billion dollars in the coffers of SVB.

Several other "stablecoins", supposed to protect cryptocurrency investors against the legendary volatility of this industry, have also stalled, such as the Dai or the USDD.

© 2023 AFP