‘Banking system is safe,’ Biden says after Silicon Valley Bank shutdown

President Biden on Monday blamed the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank and closure of Signature Bank on former President Trump’s 2018 decision to scrap some Obama-era banking regulations.

“Unfortunately, the last administration rolled back regulations,” Biden said.

Biden also offered assurances that the U.S. banking system is “safe and secure.”

“Americans can have confidence that the banking system is safe,” Biden said in remarks at the White House before leaving for a three-day visit to California and Nevada.

The president said he planned to ask Congress and bank regulators to restore Obama-era rules that were put in place to prevent another global financial crisis. In 2018, Trump signed a bipartisan bill exempting midsize institutions such as Silicon Valley Bank from those rules.

All Silicon Valley Bank clients will be protected and have access to their funds on Monday, the U.S. Treasury Department, Federal Reserve and Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. said in a joint announcement on Sunday.

“They’ll be able to pay their workers and pay their bills,” the president promised.

Biden also vowed to hold those responsible for the collapse accountable and said the bank’s shareholders would not be protected.