Tuesday, March 28, 2023

Asian stocks tumble on U.S. financial crises

The U.S. bank, which serves some of the world’s most well-known tech investors, became one of the biggest banks to fail since the global financial crisis of 2008.

• March 14, 2023
Asian stock market
Asian stock market [Credit: Reuters]

Following the decline in the United States stock market caused by the collapse of two U.S. banks, the stock market in Asia fell on Tuesday, with bank shares dropping significantly.

Japan’s Nikkei 225 Index dropped 2.2 per cent, according to Voice of America, with shares of Softbank falling 4.1 per cent, Mizuho Financial Group falling 7.1 per cent, and Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group falling 9.8 per cent. Tuesday also saw a 2.4 per cent decline in the Hang Seng Index in Hong Kong.

This development comes a few days after the renowned U.S. financial institution, Silicon Valley Bank, collapsed.

The U.S. bank, which serves some of the world’s most well-known tech investors, became one of the biggest banks to fail since the global financial crisis of 2008.

The tech lender was shut down by California regulators, who then gave The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) control of it. As receiver, the FDIC will normally sell off the bank’s assets to reimburse its clients, including depositors and creditors.

However, U.S. President Joe Biden reassured citizens on Monday that the country’s banking system is safe,  promising that taxpayers’ money would not be used as a bailout for investors at Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, both of which are based in California.

Mr Biden claimed that money banks regularly deposit into a government-held account for such emergencies will cover customers’ deposits.

However, despite the assurance, U.S. banks saw their stock market value decline by about $90 billion on Monday due to investors’ concerns over further bank failures. Midsize banks, similar in size to Silicon Valley Bank, suffered the greatest losses.

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