Despite $100 Billion in Withdrawals, US Banking System Deemed Resilient

US Treasury Secretary Janet Yellen, Federal Reserve Chairman Jerome Powell and a handful of other senior monetary officials called a special closed meeting of the Financial Stability Oversight Council (FSOC) last Friday. The Council deliberated over current banking conditions in the country and resolved that while some institutions have come under stress, the US banking system remains “sound and resilient.”

These comments, released shortly after the market closed Friday, came after new Federal Reserve data revealed that bank customers collectively withdrew $98.4 billion from accounts for the week ending March 15. This period covered the timespan during which news of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank rattled the markets.

Data shows that most of the withdrawals came from small banks. Over the same period, large banks witnessed a swelling of deposit inflows, suggesting customers were looking to put their money in perceived “safer” institutions. Money-market mutual funds also saw assets rise over the past two weeks, up $203 billion to $3.27 trillion. 

US Fed Chair Powell sought to assure the public that the banking system is safe, insisting that tools to protect depositors have been in evidence. Many banks have been flocking to emergency lending facilities, with $53.7 billion accessed from the Bank Term Funding Program, an emergency lending program created by the Federal Reserve this month to provide special liquidity to US depository institutions.