Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) had around $1.1B in outstanding loans to premium wine clients as of Dec. 31, 2022, according to a Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filing last week.
SVB has established itself as an authority in winery financing since the 1990s, having made more than $4B in loans to wineries and vineyards since 1994, per its website.
- The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation's (FDIC) intervention has put vintners at ease, with the early assurance that accounts would open Monday.
- The FDIC has informed SVB employees they will keep their jobs for at least the next 45 days to complete a sale or parceling out of assets if no whole buyer is found.
- Rob McMillan, the founder of SVB's wine division, is working to find options to continue the bank's wine division and retain the analysis component.
- The future of SVB's wine division is still unclear while the bank's operations are under the control of the FDIC.
- SVB has received a federal guarantee for all deposits beyond the $250,000 maximum.
