美国国家公共电台 NPR--Planet Money looks into the recent financial troubles at First Republic Bank

Planet Money looks into the recent financial troubles at First Republic Bank

Transcript¹

The Planet Money team looks into the recent financial troubles at First Republic Bank and examines what has helped it stay afloat.

MICHEL MARTIN, HOST:

When there was a run on Silicon² Valley Bank last month. Some other banks also looked wobbly, particularly First Republic Bank. Its stock price plummeted³, and depositors withdrew their money. As Amanda Aronczyk from our Planet Money podcast wonders, if it takes a bunch of customers to cause a bank run, can a bunch of customers stop one?

AMANDA ARONCZYK, BYLINE⁴: Both Min Park (ph) and his wife worked in banking⁵ for years. And about a decade ago, Min's wife got a job at First Republic.

MIN PARK: She was like, I love this bank. I love the people. I love everything that they do for their clients. It's so - such a personal touch.

ARONCZYK: If it sounds like Min's outside, that's because he is.

PARK: Yeah. I'm sitting in the Bay Area and enjoying a California spring day.

ARONCZYK: Delightful⁶. Anyway, when Min gave up banking to become an investor⁷, he moved all of his accounts to First Republic. And if you're wondering what a personal touch at a bank looks like, well, Min had two bankers assigned to him. He could call them up pretty much any time. And when he and his wife were expecting their first baby, he let his bankers know.

PARK: I actually give them a heads up. Then I'm like, when am I allowed to open this type of account for my future child (laughter)?

ARONCZYK: Yes, they could absolutely open a bank account for his new son. Min tried pushing the bankers a little further, but they had to say no.

PARK: Like, I can't open a credit card for a 1-year-old, unfortunately. But - (laughter) yeah.

ARONCZYK: No credit cards for babies. This is the bank's business model, providing a high degree of personal service. So when First Republic looked like it might be the next victim of a bank run, Min tweeted about how much he liked his bank.

Do you mind reading the tweet?

PARK: Yeah, of course. (Reading) Very much rooting for First Republic. It has been transformative as a banking partner for us in launching our own independent small business journeys.

ARONCZYK: He's not alone. All month, customers have been professing⁸ their loyalty⁹ on LinkedIn and Medium and Twitter. Despite all the nice tweets, Todd Baker¹⁰, a senior fellow at Columbia and a former banker himself, says that it was the customers that put the bank in jeopardy¹¹ in the first place by withdrawing $70 billion from the bank in a matter of days.

TODD BAKER: It's a prisoner's dilemma¹² problem. It's completely irrational¹³ to start a bank run. But if somebody else starts it, it's completely rational to participate in it.

ARONCZYK: That's exactly what happened. This was right after Silicon Valley Bank folded. First Republic has a similar clientele. Both banks are based in the Bay Area. Customers began to freak out.

BAKER: No one who's alive, more or less, has any real experience with a true bank run.

ARONCZYK: Where you go to get your money out of your account and it is gone, gone. So customers were just trying to figure out what to do. Then they start looking closely, scrutinizing¹⁴ their bank. Are there enough deposits left? Is there interest rate risk? First Republic customer Min, he was one of these concerned customers. Yes, he tweeted his support for the bank. But he also moved money out of one of his business accounts.

PARK: I was very much conflicted because I didn't want to help accelerate the run, because that's the kind of, like, snowball that really makes that prediction come true.

ARONCZYK: So he decided¹⁵ he would leave the rest of his accounts with First Republic. He wants to see the bank succeed. But customers alone can't save the bank. Other banks and the federal government have also stepped in to make sure First Republic survives this moment.

Amanda Aronczyk, NPR News.

(SOUNDBITE OF LYMBYC SYSTYM'S "FALL BICYCLE (THE ALBUM LEAF REMIX)"

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 silicon   

n.硅(旧名矽)

参考例句：

• This company pioneered the use of silicon chip.这家公司开创了使用硅片的方法。
• A chip is a piece of silicon about the size of a postage stamp.芯片就是一枚邮票大小的硅片。

3 plummeted   

v.垂直落下，骤然跌落( plummet的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Share prices plummeted to an all-time low. 股票价格暴跌到历史最低点。
• A plane plummeted to earth. 一架飞机一头栽向地面。 来自《简明英汉词典》

4 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

5 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

6 delightful   

adj.令人高兴的，使人快乐的

参考例句：

• We had a delightful time by the seashore last Sunday.上星期天我们在海滨玩得真痛快。
• Peter played a delightful melody on his flute.彼得用笛子吹奏了一支欢快的曲子。

7 investor   

n.投资者，投资人

参考例句：

• My nephew is a cautious investor.我侄子是个小心谨慎的投资者。
• The investor believes that his investment will pay off handsomely soon.这个投资者相信他的投资不久会有相当大的收益。

8 professing   

声称( profess的现在分词 )； 宣称； 公开表明； 信奉

参考例句：

• But( which becometh women professing godliness) with good works. 只要有善行。这才与自称是敬神的女人相宜。
• Professing Christianity, he had little compassion in his make-up. 他号称信奉基督教，却没有什么慈悲心肠。

9 loyalty   

n.忠诚，忠心

参考例句：

• She told him the truth from a sense of loyalty.她告诉他真相是出于忠诚。
• His loyalty to his friends was never in doubt.他对朋友的一片忠心从来没受到怀疑。

10 baker   

n.面包师

参考例句：

• The baker bakes his bread in the bakery.面包师在面包房内烤面包。
• The baker frosted the cake with a mixture of sugar and whites of eggs.面包师在蛋糕上撒了一层白糖和蛋清的混合料。

11 jeopardy   

n.危险；危难

参考例句：

• His foolish behaviour may put his whole future in jeopardy.他愚蠢的行为可能毁了他一生的前程。
• It is precisely at this juncture that the boss finds himself in double jeopardy.恰恰在这个关键时刻，上司发现自己处于进退两难的境地。

12 dilemma   

n.困境，进退两难的局面

参考例句：

• I am on the horns of a dilemma about the matter.这件事使我进退两难。
• He was thrown into a dilemma.他陷入困境。

13 irrational   

adj.无理性的，失去理性的

参考例句：

• After taking the drug she became completely irrational.她在吸毒后变得完全失去了理性。
• There are also signs of irrational exuberance among some investors.在某些投资者中是存在非理性繁荣的征象的。

14 scrutinizing   

v.仔细检查，详审( scrutinize的现在分词 )

参考例句：

• His grandfather's stern eyes were scrutinizing him, and Chueh-hui felt his face reddening. 祖父的严厉的眼光射在他的脸上。 来自汉英文学 - 家（1-26） - 家（1-26）
• The machine hushed, extraction and injection nozzles poised, scrutinizing its targets. 机器“嘘”地一声静了下来，输入输出管道各就各位，检查着它的目标。 来自互联网

15 decided   

adj.决定了的，坚决的；明显的，明确的

参考例句：

• This gave them a decided advantage over their opponents.这使他们比对手具有明显的优势。
• There is a decided difference between British and Chinese way of greeting.英国人和中国人打招呼的方式有很明显的区别。