Business

San Francisco Bank, Others Affected by Failure of Silicon Valley Bank

Another Bay Area bank was affected Monday by uncertainty in the financial markets following the failure of Silicon Valley Bank on Friday. Stock in San Francisco-based First Republic Bank sank nearly 62 percent Monday and shares of other regional banks suffered losses, reportedly. On Sunday, regulators seized Signature Bank in New York after it failed.

Published

3 years ago

March 21, 2023

Oakland Post

Over the weekend and Monday, top federal officials including President Joseph Biden appeared to be getting ahead of the issue. Biden sought to ease American's fears by making all deposits held by Silicon Valley Bank customers available regardless of the amount of their deposits, federal officials said over the weekend.

By Keith Burbank
Bay City News

Another Bay Area bank was affected Monday by uncertainty in the financial markets following the failure of Silicon Valley Bank on Friday.

Stock in San Francisco-based First Republic Bank sank nearly 62 percent Monday and shares of other regional banks suffered losses, reportedly.

On Sunday, regulators seized Signature Bank in New York after it failed.

But a San Jose State University professor of finance and accounting does not see the failure of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank as signs of a coming crisis.

“I don’t think it is a huge contagion issue,” said assistant professor Matthew Faulkner. “It’s more toward an isolated incident.”

Over the weekend and Monday, top federal officials including President Joseph Biden appeared to be getting ahead of the issue.

Biden sought to ease American’s fears by making all deposits held by Silicon Valley Bank customers available regardless of the amount of their deposits, federal officials said over the weekend.

That includes businesses who must pay their employees and their bills, officials said.

“Americans can have confidence that the banking system is safe,” Biden said Monday morning. “Your deposits will be there when you need them.”

Investors will not be protected, Biden said. According to the president, they took a risk and “that’s how capitalism works.”

Taxpayers will not be on the hook for the losses. Money to cover the losses will come from fees that banks pay into the deposit insurance fund, Biden said.

In California, state Treasurer Fiona Ma said Monday that her office has no exposure to Silicon Valley Bank and state and local government funds are safe.

Additionally, companies that did business with Silicon Valley Bank won’t have to pay any penalty if they must file their payroll taxes late, according to the California Employment Development Department, which collects payroll taxes.

Employers can request a waiver online at https://edd.ca.gov/en/payroll_taxes/e-Services_for_Business/ or in writing.

Silicon Valley Bank failed Friday after depositors and investors tried to withdraw $42 billion from the bank on Thursday. The bank had $175 billion in deposits at the end of last year. The withdrawals left the bank with a negative cash balance of nearly $1 billion Thursday.

Monday, First Republic Bank said it widened its financial position with liquidity from the U.S. Federal Reserve Bank and JP Morgan Chase and Co.

First Republic now has more than $70 billion to fund operations, the bank’s officials said. Additional liquidity is available through the Bank Term Funding Program, which the Federal Reserve announced Monday and ensures banks can meet the needs of their depositors.

“First Republic’s capital and liquidity positions are very strong, and its capital remains well above the regulatory threshold for well-capitalized banks,” said Jim Herbert, founder and executive chairman, and Mike Roffler, president and CEO, of First Republic Bank. “First Republic continues to fund loans, process transactions and fully serve the needs of clients.”

U.S. Senate hopeful Rep. Barbara Lee, D-Oakland, blamed the failure of Silicon Valley Bank on the rollback of federal financial regulations by former President Donald Trump.

“Federal oversight over large corporations and our economy is crucial and regulators must once again step in and ensure we do not repeat the mistakes made in 2008,” Lee said in a statement.

Silicon Valley Bank was the 16th largest bank in the United States as of March 10, Faulkner said.

Faulkner suggests depositors open another account, if they have one with more than $250,000 in it, to protect themselves.

Silicon Valley Bank was focused on serving startups, Faulkner said, which was probably part of the reason it failed. But Faulkner said the public only knows part of the story.

Copyright © 2023 Bay City News, Inc. All rights reserved. Republication, rebroadcast or redistribution without the express written consent of Bay City News, Inc. is prohibited. Bay City News is a 24/7 news service covering the greater Bay Area.

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Oakland Post: Week of February 25 – March 3, 2026

The printed Weekly Edition of the Oakland Post: Week of – February 25 – March 3, 2026

Published

1 week ago

March 1, 2026

Oakland Post

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Chase Oakland Community Center Hosts Alley-Oop Accelerator Building Community and Opportunity for Bay Area Entrepreneurs

Over the past three years, the Alley-Oop Accelerator has helped more than 20 Bay Area businesses grow, connect, and gain meaningful exposure. The program combines hands-on training, mentorship, and community-building to help participants navigate the legal, financial, and marketing challenges of small business ownership.

Published

2 weeks ago

February 21, 2026

Oakland Post

Bay Area entrepreneurs attend the Alley-Oop Accelerator, a small business incubation program at Chase Oakland Community Center. Photo by Carla Thomas.

By Carla Thomas

The Golden State Warriors and Chase bank hosted the third annual Alley-Oop Accelerator this month, an empowering eight-week program designed to help Bay Area entrepreneurs bring their visions for business to life.

The initiative kicked off on Feb. 12 at Chase’s Oakland Community Center on Broadway Street, welcoming 15 small business owners who joined a growing network of local innovators working to strengthen the region’s entrepreneurial ecosystem.

At its core, the accelerator is designed to create an ecosystem of collaboration, where local entrepreneurs can learn from one another while accessing the resources of a global financial institution.

“This is our third year in a row working with the Golden State Warriors on the Alley-Oop Accelerator,” said Jaime Garcia, executive director of Chase’s Coaching for Impact team for the West Division. “We’ve already had 20-plus businesses graduate from the program, and we have 15 enrolled this year. The biggest thing about the program is really the community that’s built amongst the business owners — plus the exposure they’re able to get through Chase and the Golden State Warriors.”

According to Garcia, several graduates have gone on to receive vendor contracts with the Warriors and have gained broader recognition through collaborations with JPMorgan Chase.

“A lot of what Chase is trying to do,” Garcia added, “is bring businesses together because what they’ve asked for is an ecosystem, a network where they can connect, grow, and thrive organically.”

This year’s Alley-Oop Accelerator reflects that vision through its comprehensive curriculum and emphasis on practical learning. Participants explore the full spectrum of business essentials including financial management, marketing strategy, and legal compliance, while also preparing for real-world experiences such as pop-up market events.

Each entrepreneur benefits from one-on-one mentoring sessions through Chase’s Coaching for Impact program, which provides complimentary, personalized business consulting.

Garcia described the impact this hands-on approach has had on local small business owners. He recalled one candlemaker, who, after participating in the program, was invited to provide candles as gifts at Chase events.

“We were able to help give that business exposure,” he explained. “But then our team also worked with them on how to access capital to buy inventory and manage operations once those orders started coming in. It’s about preparation. When a hiccup happens, are you ready to handle it?”

The Coaching for Impact initiative, which launched in 2020 in just four cities, has since expanded to 46 nationwide.

“Every business is different,” Garcia said. “That’s why personal coaching matters so much. It’s life-changing.”

Participants in the 2026 program will each receive a $2,500 stipend, funding that Garcia said can make an outsized difference. “It’s amazing what some people can do with just $2,500,” he noted. “It sounds small, but it goes a long way when you have a plan for how to use it.”

For Chase and the Warriors, the Alley-Oop Accelerator represents more than an educational initiative, it’s a pathway to empowerment and economic inclusion. The program continues to foster lasting relationships among the entrepreneurs who, as Garcia put it, “build each other up” through shared growth and opportunity.

“Starting a business is never easy, but with the right support, it becomes possible, and even exhilarating,” said Oscar Lopez, the senior business consultant for Chase in Oakland.