European bank shares sink on concerns over US sector

SHARES of Europe’s biggest banks tumbled on Friday (Mar 10), after trouble at a regional US lender sparked a Wall Street rout on the sector in the US.

Deutsche Bank shares were down nearly 10 per cent after the Frankfurt stock market opened, while Germany’s second-largest lender Commerzbank tumbled by more than 6 per cent.

In London, Barclays and HSBC shed more than 5 per cent. NatWest, Standard Chartered and Lloyd’s were each down around 4 per cent.

After the Paris stock exchange opened, Societe Generale shares dropped 5.5 per cent; BNP Paribas lost 4.4 per cent and Credit Agricole tumbled 3.6 per cent.

The four largest US banks lost US$52 billion in market value on Thursday, after shares in SVB Financial – a major lender to the tech industry – sank by 60 per cent.

The Silicon Valley bank took a beating after announcing a stock offering and offloading securities to raise much-needed cash as it struggles with falling deposits.

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It revealed that it lost US$1.8 billion following the sales.

Citing someone familiar with the matter, Bloomberg News reported that SVB chief executive officer Greg Becker asked clients to stay calm during a conference call Thursday. This came in a bid to prevent a run on the bank.

Shares of the biggest US bank, JPMorgan Chase, ended the day down 5.4 per cent on Thursday. The Bank of America and Wells Fargo both fell 6.2 per cent, while Citigroup was down 4.1 per cent. AFP