Odd Lots

Transcript: Dan Davies On What Brought Down Silicon Valley Bank

A closed Silicon Valley Bank office in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, on Friday, March 10, 2023. 

Photographer: Derek Decloet/Bloomberg
Lock
This article is for subscribers only.

Silicon Valley bank collapsed at record speed. And the world is still trying to figure out what went wrong? How did a bank with a strong history, a strong brand, and a fairly conservative investment portfolio go belly up so fast? On this episode of the podcast, we speak with Dan Davies, a Managing Director of Frontline Associates, who previously worked as a bank analyst. He explains why the bank's customer base turned out to be so much more flighty than expected, and why the bank reached for yield buying long-dated Treasuries at a time of ultra-low interest rates. We discuss what to watch next, and why he's concerned that the initial salvo to stanch the bank run may not be enough. This transcript has been lightly edited for clarity.