Why SVB's Collapse Shocked Everyone (Even Though Banks Fail All The Time)

Here’s the twist: 565 U.S. banks have failed since 2000—that’s 25 per year on average. But Silicon Valley Bank collapsing in March 2023 was genuinely shocking.

Why the panic?

SVB held $209 billion in assets. The previous regional bank that failed (2020) had only $69 million—roughly 3,000x smaller. SVB was literally the 16th largest bank in the country.

For context: even in 2010, when 157 banks crashed (the peak year), their combined assets were less than half of what SVB alone held.

The timing story:

82% of all post-2000 bank failures happened between 2008-2012 (the Great Recession aftermath). Then? Radio silence. Zero failures in 2021-2022. SVB broke a 867-day failure drought—the second longest since 1933.

The geography: Georgia and Florida account for 30% of all U.S. bank failures this century, hit hard by the 2008 housing crisis. California (home to SVB) has seen 42 failures total.

Random fact: 95% of bank failures happen on Fridays. Why? Regulators get the weekend to sort accounts before Monday madness. Signature Bank’s Sunday shutdown was so unusual it caught even its own board off-guard.