SVB collapse: Bank donated over $70 million to Black Lives Matter groups before closure
Misty Severi
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Silicon Valley Bank, which was closed by federal regulators last week, donated just over $73 million to Black Lives Matter-related social justice movements before it was shuttered, according to a conservative database.
A report from the Claremont Institute showed that the bank donated $73,400,000 to Black Lives Matter and other social justice organizations in the wake of George Floyd’s death. The donations accumulated over the course of several years. The New York-based Signature Bank, which also closed last week, gave $850,000 over several years to similar groups.
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In the summer of 2020, when Floyd died, SVB pledged to increase its commitment to “diversity, equity and inclusion.” In a report from August of that year, CEO Greg Becker touted that two-thirds of the workforce met the company’s diversity goal.
The company’s employee matching program also focused on “pandemic response, social justice, sustainability, and supporting women, black and Latinx emerging talent, and other underrepresented groups,” according to Becker.
The revelation comes as conservative critics attempt to deride the company for its “woke” policies instead of focusing on red flags that could have avoided the bank’s downfall.
“[SVB is] one of the most woke banks in [its] quest for the ESG-type policy and investing,” Rep. James Comer (R-KY) told Fox News on Sunday. “This could be a trend, and there are consequences for bad Democrat policy.”
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Democrats have blamed the situation on former President Donald Trump’s approval of the Economic Growth, Regulatory Relief, and Consumer Protection Act, which rolled back key regulations that were put in place after the 2008 financial crisis. However, former Massachusetts Democratic Rep. Barney Frank said the rollbacks did not play a role in the bank’s collapse.