The Dutch Pharming company has $45 million (more than €42 million) in an account with a bankrupt Silicon Valley bank. That’s about a quarter of all the money Leiden biotech has in cash.
The American accounts hold $26 million while the British accounts hold $19 million. Various amounts are secured to the accounts. Pharming will recover the $250,000 from the US account anyway. For the British account, it is a guarantee of more than $100,000.
The US government announced on Sunday that account holders will be able to access their funds on Monday. With this, the Federal Public Service Corporation, the Ministry of Finance and the Central Bank want to “nip further contamination of the financial system in the bud.”
Earlier today, the British government announced emergency support for startups that have lost money due to bankruptcy. This would allow them to continue paying wages and other ongoing costs. More details will be revealed on Monday.
On Friday, the SVB was closed by the authorities in the US state of California. It failed to raise funds by issuing new shares. As a result, the bank could no longer meet its obligations and went bankrupt. FDIC is designated as responsible.
At the end of 2022, SVB managed more than $175 billion in assets. This made it the sixteenth largest bank in the United States.
