Asian bank stocks tumble as US systemic concerns prevail
Reuters March 12, 2023

SINGAPORE, March 13 (Reuters) - Shares of banks in Asia slumped on Monday after the collapse of a U.S. startup-focused bank sparked a global flight to quality on fears of broader systemic risk, even as authorities tried to stem the contagion with steps to placate depositors.

The U.S. administration stepped in on Sunday with a series of emergency measures to shore up confidence in the banking system following the failure of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) (SIVB.O), which marked the biggest U.S. bank failure since the 2008 financial crisis.

After a dramatic weekend, U.S. regulators said the bank's customers will have access to all their deposits starting Monday and set up a new facility to give banks access to emergency funds.

The Federal Reserve also made it easier for banks to borrow from it in emergencies.

While U.S. stock futures and tech shares rose in Asia trade on the back of the news, banks in the region were unable to shake concerns about systemic risk and tracked losses in their Wall Street counterparts from the Friday session.

In Hong Kong, shares of HSBC Holdings opened roughly 1.7% lower at a two-month trough while Standard Chartered Bank shares fell nearly 1% to a one-month low.

U.S. banks lost over $100 billion in stock market value late last week following the collapse, while European banks lost around another $50 billion in value, according to a Reuters calculation.