Silicon Valley Bank’s new CEO ‘does business as usual’

New Silicon Valley Bank CEO Tim Maiopoulos assured clients on Monday that the lender is “open” and “doing business as usual” after the stunning collapse of the country’s 16th-biggest bank raised fears of a major economic crisis.

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) named Maiopoulos to head a newly formed bridge bank called Silicon Valley Bank NA on Monday after federal regulators shut down the startup-focused lender on Friday.

According to Investopedia, an intermediate bank is a temporary institution authorized by a financial regulator to run a bankrupt or insolvent bank until a buyer is found or the bank’s assets are liquidated.

The FDIC transferred all deposits of the defunct SVB financial group to Silicon Valley Bank NA.

Maiopoulos, who replaced former CEO Greg Becker, sent clients a lengthy email telling them the lender remained open and operating as normal, according to Reuters.

“Silicon Valley Bank, NA is open and operating as normal. We are here to serve you” wrote Mayopoulosformer head of Fannie Mae.

“I understand that the past few days have been an extremely challenging time for our customers and our employees, and we are grateful for the support of the wonderful community we serve. I have joined the company as CEO from today,” he wrote.

Maiopoulos explained that the FDIC “transferred all deposits and substantially all of the assets of the former Silicon Valley bank to a newly created FDIC-managed full-service ‘transitional bank’ as part of an action to protect all Silicon Valley bank depositors.”

He assured depositors that they “have full access to their money.”

“I approach this role with humility. I also approach this role with experience in similar situations. I was part of the new leadership team that joined Fannie Mae after the financial crisis of 2008-2009, and from 2012 to 2018 I was the CEO of Fannie Mae,” he wrote.

Maiopoulos also noted that he was president of a Silicon Valley software company “that provides technology to financial institutions to serve their consumer banking customers.”

“I know how important the Silicon Valley bank has been and continues to be to the success of its clients and innovation ecosystem,” he wrote.

“We look forward to restoring your trust and supporting you and your companies during this time,” the CEO added.

Silicon Valley Bank CEO Gerald Brady praised Mayopoulos for the email.

“It’s great to see this message from our new CEO SVB – thanks to Tim Maiopoulos for the clear message: we’re open for business and your deposits are protected” he said on twitter.

The fall of SVB was the biggest collapse of a US bank since the economic crisis of 2008.