News From the Control Tower - 3/16/2023
News from the Control Tower: Our weekly curated list of news stories affecting you and your finances.
--Amanda Vaught
A lot of financial news this week given the bank run on Silicon Valley Bank. First, if you’re worried about your own bank, I’ve included a link to Bauer Financial’s website, where you can search your bank to find its financial health.
There has been some great reporting around recent events and I’m sure there’s more to come. I’ve included a pair of articles from The Wall Street Journal: one on what CEO Greg Becker was doing (or not doing) leading up to his bank’s failure, and one on what the regulators were doing (or not doing) as Silicon Valley Bank crashed.
We will see how the politics of this bank failure shakes out, and potential impacts on banking regulations going forward.
Meanwhile, some other companies have been dealing with their own political maelstrom. Walgreens entered the fight over abortion pills, and major credit card companies fell to pressure on firearms codes.
Finally, I’ve included a satirical open letter to the billionaire Powerball winner who bought a $25 million mansion in Los Angeles this week, which actually contains some decent financial advice.
1. Bauer Financial's website shows the financial health of all banks and credit unions in the country.
2. CEO Greg Becker was there for SVB’s quick rise and even quicker fall
3. Where Were the Regulators as SVB Crashed?
Silicon Valley Bank grew too fast using borrowed money—and the risks were lurking in plain sight
4. Before abortion pills, Walgreens customers said they were denied birth control
Walgreens announced it would not distribute pills that induce abortion in 20 Republican-led states, including some where abortion medication is legal.
5. Amex, Mastercard, Visa pause work on new firearms merchant code
Amex, Mastercard, Visa pause work on new firearms merchant code.
6. An Open Letter To the $2 Billion Powerball Winner Who Bought a $25.5m Mansion [contains adult language]