The FDIC has accidentally released a list of companies it bailed out for billions in the Silicon Valley Bank collapse
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Abstraction: Leaked FDIC FOIA document reveals SVB's largest depositors bailed out above insurance limit
Key points:
- Circle (USD Coin issuer) was SVB's largest depositor at $3.3 billion; USD Coin briefly lost its $1 dollar peg on news of Circle's exposure
- Sequoia Capital had $1 billion at SVB; Kanzhun (Beijing-based, Tencent-backed) had $902.9M; Altos Labs (Jeff Bezos-backed) had $680.3M
- FDIC declared "systemic risk exception" after SVB failed March 10, 2023, guaranteeing all deposits above the $250K federal limit
- Total cost to deposit insurance fund: ~$15.8 billion to cover SVB and Signature Bank depositors above the $250K threshold
- Document was released unredacted in response to a Bloomberg FOIA request; FDIC asked Bloomberg to destroy it
- Critics noted moral hazard and controversy over covering Chinese-connected companies (Kanzhun)
Connections: Silicon Valley Bank · Fdic · Sequoia Capital · Circle · Banking Regulation · Deposit Insurance · Systemic Risk