The struggling US bank First Republic is being taken over by the US financial group JPMorgan Chase. First, the US deposit insurance company Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) will become the institute’s trustee, as the California financial regulator California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation (DFPI) announced today. JPMorgan next acquires First Republic with all deposits and virtually all assets.
Shares in First Republic Bank were temporarily suspended from trading on Friday after falling more than 50 percent to a record low. Since the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank, the bank has been struggling with many customers withdrawing their money. The background to the problems was the sudden rise in key interest rates. Despite an aid campaign by the largest US banks in coordination with the Treasury Department and the central bank in Washington, the situation remained precarious.
