美国国家公共电台 NPR--Troubled First Republic Bank is bought by JPMorgan Chase after FDIC takeover

Troubled First Republic Bank is bought by JPMorgan Chase after FDIC takeover

Transcript¹

NPR's Leila Fadel talks to David Wessel, director of the Hutchins Center at the Brookings Institution, about JPMorgan Chase buying First Republic Bank's deposits, some assets and certain liabilities.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

The second-biggest bank to fail in American history has now been acquired by the nation's largest bank, JPMorgan Chase. The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the FDIC, took possession of First Republic Bank overnight, and within hours, JPMorgan Chase announced it was acquiring First Republic's branches, deposits and most of its assets. To help us sort out the implications, we turn, as we often do, to David Wessel, director of the Hutchins Center at the Brookings Institution.

David, welcome.

DAVID WESSEL: Good morning.

FADEL: OK. So what does this mean for First Republic bank depositors?

WESSEL: Well, a lot of First Republic's deposits have already taken their money elsewhere, but there's $90 billion still there, and that money is safe. They're now deposits at JPMorgan Chase. JPMorgan Chase already had more deposits than any other U.S. bank, more than $2 trillion worth of deposits. In fact, it was so big that it had to get a special waiver from regulators to get even bigger. JPMorgan's also taking most of the mortgages and other loans that First Republic made. But the investors² in First Republic, its shareholders³, are going to be wiped out.

FADEL: Now, First Republic had been looking for a buyer for weeks without success. Why did the deal have to wait for the FDIC to seize the bank?

WESSEL: Because the hole in First Republic's balance sheet was so deep that no bank would buy it without some help from the government. Other banks bid over the weekend to acquire First Republic, but the law requires the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation to take the best deal for the government. And apparently⁴, that came from JPMorgan, which is paying $10.6 billion to buy the bank. The bank and the FDIC are going to share any losses on the loans that First Republic has made. And the FDIC is going to lend JPMorgan $50 billion for five years to help finance the purchase. Now, all in all, this is going to cost the deposit insurance fund about $13 billion. It's a lot of money, but it's less than the FDIC expects to lose on Silicon⁵ Valley Bank. That was $20 billion. And other banks are going to get assessed to cover those losses.

FADEL: Now, Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank failed in March when depositors lost confidence and pulled their money out, and that threatened to spark more bank runs. A mass exodus⁶ didn't happen, but depositors did leave First Republic. Why the exception there?

WESSEL: Well, like Silicon Valley Bank, First Republic had a lot of deposits that were not insured. A hundred billion dollars of them fled in the past few months. And it also had a lot of low-interest mortgage loans on his books. And the value of those fell as the Fed raised interest rates. Now, there was an effort to save the bank. Eleven of the nation's biggest banks deposited $30 billion in First Republic to kind of reassure⁷ depositors. But it simply wasn't enough, and time ran out for them.

FADEL: Now, this is the fourth time in the last two months that the government has taken control of an American lender. Is this over, David, or is this just going to keep happening?

WESSEL: Well, that's a good question. We'll have to see.

FADEL: Yeah.

WESSEL: In times like these, the failure of one bank often leads people to question the stability of other banks. It's known as contagion⁸ to financial market analysts⁹. And there are some other banks that have some similar issues. Now, the fact that all the depositors at Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank and now at First Republic got all their money back, that may reassure depositors at other banks. There are some analysts who are saying this is the last domino to fall, but I think it's too early to sound the all clear. A lot of banks suffered when the Fed raised interest rates so much in the past year.

FADEL: Now, Fed policymakers meet this week to decide whether to raise interest rates again. How does all of this play into the Fed's decisions?

WESSEL: The Fed is still very likely to raise interest rates by another one-quarter percentage point this week, but it may signal that it may be about ready to stop raising interest rates. Fed Chair Jay Powell has pointed¹⁰ out that the banking¹¹ crisis is making banks more reluctant to lend, and that means there'll be less borrowing and less spending in the economy, which is what the Fed wants. So the banking crisis may substitute for the further rate increases.

FADEL: David Wessel is director of the Hutchins Center at the Brookings Institution.

Thank you, David.

WESSEL: You're welcome.

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 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

3 shareholders   

n.股东( shareholder的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• The meeting was attended by 90% of shareholders. 90%的股东出席了会议。
• the company's fiduciary duty to its shareholders 公司对股东负有的受托责任

4 apparently   

adv.显然地；表面上，似乎

参考例句：

• An apparently blind alley leads suddenly into an open space.山穷水尽，豁然开朗。
• He was apparently much surprised at the news.他对那个消息显然感到十分惊异。

5 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。

6 exodus   

v.大批离去，成群外出

参考例句：

• The medical system is facing collapse because of an exodus of doctors.由于医生大批离去，医疗系统面临崩溃。
• Man's great challenge at this moment is to prevent his exodus from this planet.人在当前所遇到的最大挑战，就是要防止人从这个星球上消失。

7 reassure   

v.使放心，使消除疑虑

参考例句：

• This seemed to reassure him and he continued more confidently.这似乎使他放心一点，于是他更有信心地继续说了下去。
• The airline tried to reassure the customers that the planes were safe.航空公司尽力让乘客相信飞机是安全的。

8 contagion   

n.(通过接触的疾病)传染；蔓延

参考例句：

• A contagion of fear swept through the crowd.一种恐惧感在人群中迅速蔓延开。
• The product contagion effect has numerous implications for marketing managers and retailers.产品传染效应对市场营销管理者和零售商都有很多的启示。

9 analysts   

分析家，化验员( analyst的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• City analysts forecast huge profits this year. 伦敦金融分析家预测今年的利润非常丰厚。
• I was impressed by the high calibre of the researchers and analysts. 研究人员和分析人员的高素质给我留下了深刻印象。

10 pointed   

adj.尖的，直截了当的

参考例句：

• He gave me a very sharp pointed pencil.他给我一支削得非常尖的铅笔。
• She wished to show Mrs.John Dashwood by this pointed invitation to her brother.她想通过对达茨伍德夫人提出直截了当的邀请向她的哥哥表示出来。

11 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。