WHO demands COVID origin search: https://www.usnews.com/news/world/articles/2023-03-12/finding-covid-19s-origins-is-a-moral-imperative-whos-tedros . Calling this search a moral imperative represents perhaps the most forceful demand WHO has ever made to China.
Most common long COVID symptoms: https://www.prevention.com/health/a43234324/most-common-long-covid-symptoms/ . The full list near the end of the article looks like the lists we have seen before. However, the article opens with an emphasis on gastrointestinal symptoms, which have not been highlighted previously.
FDA and CDC warn Florida’s surgeon general over his COVID vaccine lunacy: https://apnews.com/article/florida-surgeon-general-covid-vaccine-study-b3be9c2f22974176ae15d38025882335 . DeMentis talks vaccine manure to the GOP base to promote his rise to authoritarian power. His minion Lapado is apparently stupid enough to not only believe this anti-science lunacy, but to send federal health agencies a letter promoting this crap. The federal response: You are dangerous. Please take a nice warm cup of shut the hell up, and don’t call us in the morning.
Progress report on Oregon’s magic mushroom therapy program: https://apnews.com/article/magic-mushroom-therapy-psilocybin-legalization-oregon-bd1b3c43cab74437e8868751c9c9591d .
WSJ: Hospitals continue to make serious medical errors: https://www.wsj.com/articles/hospitals-medical-errors-how-they-reduce-them-edfa257f .
New York closes Signature Bank: https://finance.yahoo.com/news/york-state-regulators-close-signature-223852687.html . The uninsured depositors of this crypto-friendly bank will be made whole, while shareholders and certain unsecured debtholders will not be protected. Amounts used by the FDIC to protect uninsured depositors will be recovered by a special assessment on banks, as required by law.
Feds reject SVB bailout: https://apnews.com/article/silicon-valley-bank-bailout-yellen-deposits-failure-94f2185742981daf337c4691bbb9ec1e . As expressed yesterday, this seems like the correct approach. The possibility of a purchase remains on the table, but as the asset shortfall may run into the billions, it is unclear if any bank would be willing to step in to make depositors whole.
UPDATE: Feds will make uninsured depositors whole: https://www.npr.org/2023/03/12/1162975615/the-u-s-takes-emergency-measures-to-protect-all-deposits-at-silicon-valley-bank . While the article does not say where the money is coming from, I would guess that a special assessment on banks will pay for the reimbursement. However, this assessment could run into the billions, which seems large enough to negatively impact the banks’ earnings. Note that 90% of SVB’s deposits are not insured by FDIC.
FURTHER UPDATE: This NBC story confirms that the special assessment approach (specifically, the payments made quarterly by banks to the Deposit Insurance Fund) will also be used for the SVB liabilities: https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/silicon-valley-bank-getting-government-bailout-not-2008-sense-rcna74581 . The article says this pays the cost “in part” without specifying the percentage or the other funds involved.
ANOTHER UPDATE: Bank of London makes bid for British subsidiary of SVB: https://www.nbcnews.com/business/business-news/silicon-valley-bank-getting-government-bailout-not-2008-sense-rcna74581 . Banking regulation in the UK of course differs from the US regulatory structure.
YES, ANOTHER UPDATE: Seeking Alpha says SVB CEO sold $3.6 billion of SVB stock two weeks before collapse: https://seekingalpha.com/news/3946677-silicon-valley-bank-ceo-sold-36b-of-stock-two-weeks-before-bank-failed . BILLION? That’s an error – it’s $3.6 million. The error is in both the headline and the link, but the article says “million” and you can verify that by multiplying the number of shares sold by the share price. However, the CFO also sold shares before the collapse worth about a half a million. Whether or not they technically complied with insider trading rules, this is going to be a huge problem for these two.
STILL MORE: SVB CEO removed from San Francisco Fed Board on Friday: https://www.thestreet.com/technology/svb-ceo-quietly-and-swiftly-removed-from-powerful-board . Yes, the change occurred quietly, but it’s not going to stay that way for long. The intersection of this with the stock sale story will get real ugly in a hurry. There was a really dangerous fox in the henhouse.
AND: Biden to address bank failures and federal action on Monday: https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/markets/biden-to-defend-us-banking-system-after-svb-signature-collapse/ar-AA18xAzk?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=72a7b9aa2a084aa886ad01e666d02880&ei=23 . Note that some of stricter financial regulation put in place after the 2008 banking fiasco was repealed during the Orange Julius administration. Of course, right? …
ALSO: FDIC insurance does not cover a significant percentage of bank deposits: https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/personalfinance/us-banks-have-well-over-1-trillion-of-uninsured-deposits-signature-bank-was-among-the-most-exposed/ar-AA18xzKL?ocid=hpmsn&cvid=50b1e25ee5584016b9986b7c0f771c09&ei=37 . However, Chicken Little apparently wrote this story. Deposits above the FDIC insurance limit typically have full asset backing. When the FDIC takes over a bank, the issue is the difference between the assets and the liabilities, which obviously is a smaller number than the total liabilities. What we need is a measure of the banks’ current bond losses. Oh – here’s a very good one …
US banks sitting on $620 billion of unrealized losses: https://www.cnn.com/2023/03/12/investing/stocks-week-ahead/index.html . Obviously, this is a huge number, but in context it is not that large. As the US GDP is $24 trillion, these bond losses are less than 3% of our GDP.
AND LASTLY FOR TODAY: FDIC holds auction for SVB, bids due Sunday: https://www.benzinga.com/news/23/03/31311341/fdic-reportedly-holds-auction-for-silicon-valley-bank-with-final-bids-due-by-sunday . To say this has been an active day understates the case. The most active news day of the week is typically Wednesday, and (until today) never Sunday …
Meanwhile, WSJ is all over the map on SVB: The effect on California’s winemakers: https://www.wsj.com/articles/silicon-valley-banks-collapse-threatens-california-winemakers-c9db03f7 . Racing to get money out: https://www.wsj.com/articles/how-silicon-valley-turned-on-silicon-valley-bank-ee293ac9 . Stemming contagion: https://www.wsj.com/articles/silicon-valley-bank-fallout-poses-new-risks-for-markets-fed-81d1617a . Clients scramble: https://www.wsj.com/articles/investors-startups-work-to-find-cash-lifelines-after-silicon-valley-bank-collapse-1b7c9ceb . Bidders for SVB UK subsidiary: https://www.wsj.com/articles/u-k-offers-aid-to-silicon-valley-bank-customers-4a8c3f1c . Feds seek buyer for SVB: https://www.wsj.com/articles/regulators-to-hold-auction-for-silicon-valley-bank-9c05701f . Nikki Haley on no taxpayer bailout: https://www.wsj.com/articles/silicon-valley-bank-collapse-becomes-campaign-topic-as-gop-warns-against-bailout-73c97b04 . Clients with big deposits at SVB: https://www.wsj.com/articles/companies-with-deposits-trapped-in-silicon-valley-bank-9034f33b . Wall Street braces for more bank failures: https://www.wsj.com/articles/wall-street-braces-for-the-next-silicon-valley-bank-956b8f03 . Fed emergency bank measures: https://www.wsj.com/articles/federal-reserve-rolls-out-emergency-measures-to-prevent-banking-crisis-ba4d7f98 . Regulators close Signature Bank: https://www.wsj.com/articles/signature-bank-is-shut-by-regulators-after-svb-failure-a5f9e0f7 . First Republic Bank gets additional liquidity: https://www.wsj.com/articles/first-republic-gets-additional-funding-from-fed-jpmorgan-d11e68ca . I suggest readers compare the content from this batch of articles with those in the preceding paragraphs. The Journal’s content is pathetically shallow in comparison to the preceding material. It is sad to see a formerly blue chip business newspaper decline into a Murdoch property.
Nancy Pelosi’s take on SVB and the GOP: https://deadline.com/2023/03/nancy-pelosi-at-sxsw-former-house-speaker-hopes-silicon-valley-bank-will-be-bought-by-rival-bank-talks-about-cult-thug-republican-party-1235286688/ . Nancy’s language about the GOP becomes more strident as she no longer has to negotiate with them.
Heavy casualties reported in Bakhmut: https://www.aljazeera.com/news/2023/3/13/heavy-casualties-reported-in-bakhmut-as-battle-for-city-rages . This is Ukraine’s (and Russia’s) Gettysburg … WSJ: More: https://www.wsj.com/articles/russian-ukrainian-forces-pinned-down-in-fight-for-key-city-24903ecb .
Islamic Fatwa Council declares Hamas “un-Islamic”: https://www.foxnews.com/world/in-groundbreaking-ruling-middle-eastern-islamic-council-declares-fatwa-against-hamas . Lumping Hamas in with ISIS, Boko Haram, Al-Qaeda and the Muslim Brotherhood may prove significant in reducing the support Hamas receives from outside Gaza and the West Bank.