First Citizens to buy collapsed SVB, deal soothes broader markets

First Citizens BancShares agreed to buy failed Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), closing one chapter in the crisis of confidence that has ripped through global financial markets.

Under the deal, the North Carolina-based bank will assume SVB assets of US$110 billion (S$147 billion), deposits of US$56 billion and loans of US$72 billion.

It gave the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp (FDIC), which took control of SVB earlier in March, equity rights in its stock worth as much as US$500 million in return.

Customers retain access to their accounts, First Citizens said, and branches open on Monday.

SVB's failure will cost its deposit insurance fund about US$20 billion, the FDIC estimates.

SVB was the largest bank to collapse since the 2008 financial crisis.

Its closure on March 10 reverberated around the world, sending United States depositors fleeing smaller banks for larger cousins, while the hit to confidence forced Credit Suisse into the arms of rival UBS last week.

A buyer for SVB helped cast an uneasy calm over fragile markets on Monday, which have been roiled by worries of a credit crunch and systemic bank stress.