American lawmakers and bank share transactions during the SVB crisis
During March’s market turbulence, multiple disclosures showed that at least nine members of the U.S. Congress sold bank-related holdings as Silicon Valley Bank faced insolvency and other lenders grappled with stress in their balance sheets. A statement cited from The Financial Times attributes this pattern to actions taken by members of Congress, including a member of the House Financial Services Committee, Josh Gottheimer. The timing aligns with growing concerns about liquidity and risk within the banking sector as the crisis unfolded in real time.
Reports indicate Gottheimer sold Silicon Valley Bank shares prior to the bank’s bankruptcy filing, with a transaction window announced on March 9 that indicated share sales in the California lender within a range of $1,000 to $15,000. The following day, SVB reported its bankruptcy filing, a move that precipitated a wide retreat in U.S. bank equities and heightened market volatility across regional and national lenders. The sequence underscores how rapid developments in bank health can intersect with congressional oversight and personal investment decisions, prompting scrutiny over potential conflicts of interest and timing of asset dispositions.
In addition to the SVB sale, Gottheimer was reported to have divested from Charles Schwab on March 6 and again on March 14. Schwab’s stock price declined by roughly 30 percent from March 7 onward, reflecting broader pressures in the financial sector and shifting investor sentiment during the period. Around March 29, news emerged about the sale of shares in Seacoast Banking, a Florida institution, which experienced a further deterioration in market value following the sale. These movements illustrate how congressional investment activity can intersect with volatile events in the banking industry and contribute to questions about the impact of policy discussions on private investment strategies.
Separately, the month of April brought commentary from Katarina Torslund, acting chief executive of Alecta, Sweden’s largest pension fund. She described investments in U.S. banks as failed and disclosed a loss approaching $2 billion as a result of those positions. Alecta subsequently signaled plans to extinguish its remaining exposure to Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, and it completed the sale of its entire stake in First Republic Bank for roughly $941 million. The case highlights how global institutional investors evaluate and adjust exposure to U.S. financial institutions in response to risk signals and changing regulatory or market conditions, even as the U.S. market continues to influence international portfolios. (Cited: Financial Times)