New York regulators have shut down Signature Bank, one of two major banks used by cryptocurrency companies, as the government works to prevent the spreading financial crisis.
As with Silicon Valley Bank, all of Signature Bank's depositors will be made whole, the U.S. Treasury Department, the FDIC, and the Federal Reserve announced in a joint statement today.
- The
New York Department of Financial Services has now taken possession of
Signature Bank, which had $88.6B in deposits and $110.4B in assets as of
Dec. 31.
- Both the bank's insured and uninsured customers will
be given access to all deposits under the same “systemic risk exception”
as Silicon Valley Bank, regulators said.
- Signature's clients
included real estate and law firms, as well as cryptocurrency companies.
Large crypto exchange Coinbase had a $240M cash balance at the bank as of Friday.
- Signature was one of the two major U.S. banks to serve crypto firms. The other, Silvergate, announced its voluntary liquidation
last week, saying it would fully repay all deposits and consider how to
best "resolve claims and preserve the residual value of its assets."
