Apollo eyes SVB assets as suitors circle US$73.6 billion loan book
APOLLO Global Management expressed interest in snapping up a book of loans held by Silicon Valley Bank, the California lender seized by federal regulators last week.
Apollo, one of the world’s largest alternative asset managers, is among other investors looking to buy pieces of Silicon Valley Bank, according to people familiar with the matter.
The bank had US$73.6 billion of loans as of Dec 31, 2022, but the size of the loan book Apollo is interested in couldn’t be determined. Apollo declined to comment.
The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) took over Silicon Valley Bank on Friday (Mar 10) after its long-established customer base of tech startups began withdrawing deposits en masse.
At the end of last year, the bank had more than US$175 billion in mostly uninsured deposits and US$209 billion in total assets. Many of those assets were long-term bonds the bank had to sell at a loss due to rising interest rates.
Silicon Valley Bank’s other assets include loans to early-stage and growth companies as well as credit for wealthy entrepreneurs and venture capital funds.
The FDIC held an auction over the weekend, but no buyer emerged. Instead, the regulator created a bridge bank to house SVB’s deposits and has promised to make all of its customers whole.
SVB Financial Group, the former holding company of Silicon Valley Bank, is also exploring the possibility of selling off other units including SVB Capital and SVB Securities.
The FDIC declined to comment, and SVB did not immediately return a request for comment. BLOOMBERG
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