Regulators close Signature bank, say depositors will be made whole

As of September, almost a quarter of Signature’s deposits came from the cryptocurrency sector, but the bank announced in December that it would shrink its crypto-related deposits by $8 billion

State regulators closed New York-based Signature Bank on Sunday, days after California authorities shuttered Silicon Valley Bank, in a collapse that roiled global markets and left billions of dollars of uninsured deposits belonging to companies and investors stranded.

The U.S. Treasury Department and other bank regulators said in a joint statement on Sunday that all depositors of Signature Bank will be made whole, and "no losses will be borne by the taxpayer."

New York banking regulators appointed the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) as receiver for later disposition of the bank's assets. Signature Bank reported deposit balances totaling $89.17 billion as of March 8.

Representatives for Signature Bank did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

The bank's failure followed Silicon Valley Bank's Friday shutdown, the largest failure since Washington Mutual went bust in 2008 during the financial crisis.

U.S. officials on Sunday said Silicon Valley Bank customers will have access to their deposits starting on Monday. The federal government also announced actions to shore up deposits and stem any broader financial fallout from the collapse of the tech start-up-focused lender.

Signature Bank, a commercial bank with private client offices in New York, Connecticut, California, Nevada and North Carolina, had nine national business lines, including commercial real estate and digital asset banking.