SVB's Hong Kong staff still feeling good about all they have achieved
SVB’s Hong Kong staff are bidding farewell and seeking "closure" amid talk of a rescue deal for the China joint venture.
Silicon Valley Bank’s Chinese joint venture is likely to be taken over by its Chinese partner Shanghai Pudong Development Bank, which wants to protect the country’s fast-growing tech companies, according to reports.
The potential buyout follows the acquisition by HSBC of SVB’s UK operations and comes after SVB, the 16th largest bank in the US, was taken over by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
SPD Silicon Valley Bank (SSVB) was established in 2012 with the aim of building “ an innovation ecosystem in China.” Through its head office in Shanghai, and branches in Beijing and Shenzhen, SSVB provides on-shore commercial banking services and products for innovation companies, including RMB and USD account services, flexible debt solutions and trade finance services.
The President of the joint venture is Jane Wang, a managing director who was SVB’s first local employee when it established an office in China in 2005. At the time of SVB’s collapse, the joint venture employs more than 120 staff based on profiles on LinkedIn. In 2021, the last year of published accounts, SSVB reported a 46% rise in operating income RMB 487m ($US70m). Total compensation rose 33% to RMB187m.
Apart from the on-shore joint venture, SVB also has a global funds business in Hong Kong serving the financing needs of venture capital and private equity firms and according to sources it was the biggest of its kind. Hong Kong-based Bo Hansen, who ran the global funds business for Asia, noted SVB’s achievements over the past 10 decade in Asia: “Not only did our businesses grow multiples over the years, we also did as individuals. How could a bank the size of SVB be so impactful to ecosystems globally. We were ambassadors of innovation and stewards of deep immersive relationship,” Hansen said in LinkedIn post on March 14.
Hansen said he was looking to find “closure” and name-checked more than 30 colleagues who helped to set up the joint venture or work at SVB Asia. As well as Wang, they include Ken Wilcox, who founded the JV in 2012 before returning to the US three years later where he sat the board of SSVB, David Jones chairman of the joint venture and Scott Bergquist, head of Asia platform strategy.
“I am a dreamer and this institution has given me the chance to do that and grow personally beyond the numbers, into a true global citizen. I do not think there is another way. Now Onward,” Hansen declared.
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