Markets endured another volatile week as banks lurched from one crisis to another. Investors sought refuge in tradition safe-haven assets, government bonds and precious metals, before appetite for risk recovered. The blue-chip S&P 500 index ended up 2.5% higher.
Silicon Valley Bank’s failure led to a run on US regional banks and claimed another victim, Signature Bank. Another, First Republic Bank, has been propped up by $30 billion of deposits from the largest US banks but its share price continues to crater and it remains vulnerable.
However, when Credit Suisse moved into the spotlight, it became much more serious. The 167-year-old bank has a global footprint with a balance sheet around twice the size of Lehman Brothers’ when it collapsed in 2008. Credit Suisse has been beset by scandal over the past 3 years but a restructuring plan was underway under new leadership.
TEAM plc (LON:TEAM) is building a new wealth, asset management and complementary financial services group. With a focus on the UK, Crown Dependencies and International Finance Centres, the strategy is to build local businesses of scale around TEAM’s core skill of providing investment management services.
