Silicon Valley Bank

Corporate brand

Former United States commercial bank specializing in financial services for technology, life-science, venture-capital, and startup companies; it failed in March 2023 and its deposits and loans were acquired by First Citizens Bank.

Last updated October 21, 2026

AI crawler reads

No AI crawler has read this profile since Oct 28, 2026.

Overview

Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) was a United States commercial bank built around the financing needs of venture-backed companies and the broader innovation economy. Founded in 1983 in San Jose, California, by former Wells Fargo executive Bill Biggerstaff and Stanford professor Robert Medearis, the bank addressed a gap in conventional banking: many technology startups had limited revenue, uncertain cash flows, and substantial intangible value, yet were backed by venture-capital investors and needed operating accounts, credit, and financial advice. SVB developed a specialized model that combined deposits from venture-funded companies with lending to startups, venture-capital and private-equity firms, founders, and technology businesses. It also cultivated relationships with investors, lawyers, accountants, and other professional advisers who influenced where young companies banked. The bank expanded alongside Silicon Valley and later established operations in other technology centers, including the Boston Route 128 corridor. It added private banking, venture-capital services, foreign-exchange and treasury products, syndicated lending, wine-industry finance, and international operations. Through subsidiaries and partnerships, its network reached markets including the United Kingdom, China, India, Israel, Canada, and parts of Europe. By the mid-2010s, SVB stated that it served a large majority of United States startups, and it became closely associated with venture-backed technology companies. Its customers also included life-sciences and healthcare businesses, private-equity and venture-capital funds, high-net-worth individuals, and premium-wine producers. SVB's niche produced strong growth but also created concentration risks. A substantial share of its customers were early-stage or venture-backed businesses whose deposits rose rapidly during the technology and startup funding boom. The bank invested much of those deposits in longer-duration securities, including United States Treasury and agency mortgage-backed securities. When interest rates increased sharply during 2022 and the technology sector weakened, the market value of those securities declined. At the same time, startups began drawing down deposits as venture funding became less available. The resulting mismatch between the duration of assets and the liquidity needs of depositors weakened confidence in the bank. In early March 2023, SVB announced plans to raise capital after realizing losses on securities. The announcement triggered a rapid run, intensified by communication among technology investors and customers. On March 10, 2023, California's Department of Financial Protection and Innovation closed the bank and appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation as receiver, citing inadequate liquidity and insolvency. The failure was the second-largest United States bank failure at the time. Regulators subsequently created a bridge bank, and on March 12 the Treasury Department, Federal Reserve, and FDIC announced that all SVB depositors, including those with uninsured balances, would have access to their funds under a systemic-risk exception. On March 27, 2023, First Citizens Bank & Trust Company, a subsidiary of First Citizens BancShares, assumed SVB's deposits and acquired its loans from the FDIC's bridge bank. The original Silicon Valley Bank ceased to operate as an independent institution, although the SVB name and certain business activities continued within First Citizens' organization. The bank's history remains a prominent case study in interest-rate risk, deposit concentration, liquidity management, supervisory oversight, and the speed with which confidence can deteriorate in a digitally connected financial system.

History

Silicon Valley Bank was established in 1983 as a state-chartered bank focused on technology startups. Its founders, Bill Biggerstaff and Robert Medearis, recruited Roger V. Smith, an experienced technology lender, as the first chief executive. The original strategy was to understand companies that traditional banks often considered too risky because they lacked stable revenue. SVB used relationships with venture-capital firms and professional advisers to evaluate borrowers, gather deposits, and support companies through successive stages of growth. The bank grew with the California technology economy and recorded sustained profitability during much of the 1980s. It acquired National InterCity Bank of Santa Clara in 1986 and opened its first East Coast office near Boston in 1990. A real-estate lending expansion produced losses during the early-1990s California property downturn, prompting a reduction in that portfolio. In 1994 the bank added lending to wineries, and in 1995 it moved its headquarters from San Jose to Santa Clara. During the dot-com era, SVB benefited from the expansion of technology entrepreneurship. It continued serving companies before they became profitable, while also expanding its branch network and relationships with venture investors. Under Ken Wilcox, who became chief executive in 2000, the institution retained its specialist technology orientation rather than becoming a conventional diversified commercial bank. It entered private banking in 2002 and later developed international operations and partnerships in markets including India, Israel, China, and the United Kingdom. SVB Financial Group received $235 million through the United States Troubled Asset Relief Program during the 2008 financial crisis. The group later repaid the government and repurchased its preferred stock. In 2011, Greg Becker succeeded Wilcox as chief executive. In 2012, SVB and Shanghai Pudong Development Bank formed SPD Silicon Valley Bank, a separately organized Shanghai-based bank serving technology startups. SVB also introduced services such as syndicated lending and foreign-currency management and supported the launch of Stripe Atlas in 2016. The bank's growth was closely tied to the startup funding cycle. Its customer base included technology and life-sciences companies, venture-capital and private-equity firms, founders, healthcare businesses, and premium-wine producers. A large portion of its deposits came from companies financed by venture investors, and its lending included credit secured by fund commitments. This specialization gave SVB deep ecosystem relationships but also made its balance sheet sensitive to technology-sector conditions and the behavior of a concentrated depositor base. During the inflationary period beginning in 2021, United States interest-rate increases reduced the market value of SVB's long-duration securities. The technology downturn also caused startups to use cash more quickly as venture funding slowed. At the end of 2022, the bank had substantial unrealized losses on securities classified as held to maturity. In March 2023, an effort to strengthen capital and disclose securities losses precipitated a depositor run. California regulators closed SVB on March 10 and placed it into FDIC receivership. A bridge bank was created, and federal authorities guaranteed access to all deposits. On March 27, First Citizens acquired the bridge bank's deposits and loans. The independent SVB therefore became defunct, while selected operations and the brand continued under First Citizens.

2023
Bank failure and FDIC receivership
[1]Silicon Valley Banken.wikipedia.org
California regulators close SVB after a liquidity crisis and depositor run; the FDIC becomes receiver.
2023
First Citizens acquisition
[3]FDIC announces purchase of Silicon Valley Bridge Bank by First Citizensfdic.gov
First Citizens acquires the bridge bank's deposits and loans.
2016
Stripe Atlas partnership
[1]Silicon Valley Banken.wikipedia.org
SVB acts as a financial partner when Stripe launches Atlas for startup incorporation and banking support.
2012
Shanghai banking partnership
[1]Silicon Valley Banken.wikipedia.org
SVB and Shanghai Pudong Development Bank establish SPD Silicon Valley Bank.
2011
Greg Becker becomes chief executive
[1]Silicon Valley Banken.wikipedia.org
Becker succeeds Ken Wilcox as chief executive.
2008
Receives TARP investment
[1]Silicon Valley Banken.wikipedia.org
SVB Financial Group receives a federal preferred-stock investment during the financial crisis and later repays it.
2002
Private banking expansion
[1]Silicon Valley Banken.wikipedia.org
SVB formally enters private banking for entrepreneurs and venture investors.
1990
First East Coast office opens
[1]Silicon Valley Banken.wikipedia.org
The bank establishes a presence near Boston's Route 128 technology corridor.
1986
Acquisition of National InterCity Bank
[1]Silicon Valley Banken.wikipedia.org
SVB acquires National InterCity Bank of Santa Clara.
1983
Silicon Valley Bank is founded
[1]Silicon Valley Banken.wikipedia.org
The bank launches in San Jose to serve technology startups and venture-backed companies.

Products and positioning

A specialist commercial bank and financial-services platform for the technology, life-sciences, venture-capital, and startup ecosystem.

Commercial banking · 1983
Startup banking
Deposit, cash-management, credit, and operating-account services designed for venture-backed startups, including companies with limited current revenue but institutional investor support.
Lending · 1983
Venture and growth lending
Loans and credit facilities for startups, venture-capital firms, and private-equity firms. Some facilities were secured by fund commitments or other assets and were intended to provide liquidity during investment and growth cycles.
Private banking · 2002
Private banking
Banking and financial services for entrepreneurs, founders, venture investors, and other wealthy clients, added as SVB broadened relationships beyond company operating accounts.
Treasury services
Treasury and foreign-currency management
Cash-management, payments, liquidity, foreign-exchange, and currency-management services for companies operating across multiple jurisdictions.
Specialized finance
Life-sciences and healthcare finance
Banking and lending for biotechnology, pharmaceutical, medical-device, healthcare, and other life-sciences businesses, reflecting SVB's wider focus on innovation-driven industries.

Controversies

2023
Silicon Valley Bank collapse
The bank failed after interest-rate-related securities losses, concentrated technology-sector deposits, inadequate liquidity management, and a rapid depositor run. Regulators seized it on March 10, 2023.
Source
2021
Former executive insider-trading case
Former senior vice president and director Mounir Gad pleaded guilty to violating insider-trading laws by passing information about startup acquisitions to an associate.
Source

2007EF Education–Tibco–SVB sponsorship
United States · International cycling
SVB began sponsoring a women's professional cycling team and became a co-title sponsor in 2015.
Outcome. Extended the brand's visibility into professional women's cycling.
Source
2003International technology trade missions
India · Israel · China
SVB sponsored delegations of venture-capital investors to meet entrepreneurs, investors, and public officials in Bangalore and Mumbai, Tel Aviv, and Shanghai and Beijing.
Outcome. Supported the bank's subsequent international expansion.
Source

Brand decisions

2023
Attempted capital raise during liquidity stressStrategy
Background
Higher interest rates reduced the market value of long-duration securities while startup customers were withdrawing deposits amid a technology-sector downturn.
Action taken
SVB disclosed securities losses and sought to raise capital, prompting a severe loss of depositor confidence and an accelerated run.
Aftermath
California regulators closed the bank on March 10, 2023, and appointed the FDIC as receiver.
Source
2023
Sale of bridge-bank operations to First CitizensM&A
Background
After the closure, the FDIC operated SVB's successor as a bridge bank to preserve access to deposits and banking services.
Action taken
First Citizens acquired the bridge bank's deposits and loans and assumed operations of SVB branches.
Aftermath
The independent Silicon Valley Bank ceased to exist, while parts of its business continued within First Citizens.
Source

Recent events

2023
US regulators guarantee access to all SVB deposits[2]FDIC announces systemic-risk protection for SVB depositorsfdic.gov
Regulation · Other
The Treasury Department, Federal Reserve, and FDIC announced that depositors would have access to both insured and uninsured funds under a systemic-risk exception.
2023
First Citizens acquires Silicon Valley Bridge Bank[3]FDIC announces purchase of Silicon Valley Bridge Bank by First Citizensfdic.gov
M&A
First Citizens assumed the bridge bank's deposits and acquired its loans and branches in a transaction arranged by the FDIC.

Sources17 sources

Cite this profile: Cite the canonical profile. /brand-wiki/silicon-valley-bank · Editorial policy · How profiles are compiled