Former Silvergate CEO: Biden administration pressure led to the firm's orderly wind-down in 2023, when it remained solvent.

Crypto-friendly bank Silvergate’s former CEO Alan Lane published an article reviewing the bank’s liquidation process, stating that Silvergate faced customer withdrawals equivalent to 70% of its demand deposits over several weeks in the fourth quarter of 2022, a scale of bank run that no U.S. bank had successfully weathered before. Lane noted that Silvergate had already conducted balance sheet and liquidity management tailored to the crypto industry’s high volatility at the time. Though forced to sell some highly liquid assets at a loss to repay secured loans, the bank still held sufficient capital and liquidity and remained solvent throughout. The 2022 crypto industry crisis led multiple funds and trading platforms to file for bankruptcy, prompting Silvergate’s clients to sharply reduce their dollar deposits and trigger a bank run. Subsequently, the Biden administration and multiple federal agencies launched investigations into Silvergate, and implemented regulatory policies restricting banks from providing services to the crypto sector. Lane argued that external criticism of Silvergate focused mainly on three areas: over-reliance on the crypto sector, interest rate risk, and regulatory compliance. He emphasized that business concentration does not equate to a lack of risk management, noting Silvergate had made specific plans for industry-specific risks. Additionally, the bank always held high-quality liquid assets to cope with deposit fluctuations, and claimed no regulatory body had found its anti-money laundering controls to be ineffective. After nine years of serving the crypto industry, Silvergate did not collapse due to insolvency or liquidity exhaustion, but voluntarily chose to cease operations under pressure. On March 8, 2023, Silvergate announced an orderly liquidation and cessation of operations.