美国国家公共电台 NPR--2 bank failures are making smaller banks nervous about losing customers

2 bank failures are making smaller banks nervous about losing customers

Transcript¹

After the collapse² of Silicon³ Valley Bank, some customers have been moving their money from smaller, regional banks to larger lenders. And that could reshape the banking⁴ landscape.

LEILA FADEL, HOST:

Shares of small regional banks regained⁵ some ground yesterday after falling sharply on Monday.

SACHA PFEIFFER, HOST:

But they're facing questions about their stability and fears that depositors will take their money elsewhere.

FADEL: NPR's David Gura joins us now to explain. Good morning.

DAVID GURA, BYLINE⁶: Hey, Leila.

FADEL: Hi, David. OK, so shares are regaining⁷ ground. The administration announced a major rescue plan. But people are still feeling skeptical⁸ of smaller banks. What's driving the fear?

GURA: Yeah, the twin failures of those two banks was so shocking that even after President Biden assured Americans on Monday morning the banking system is safe, many people are still being extra cautious. Denelle (ph) is one of them. She's a real estate agent in California. She asked us not to use her last name because she's discussing her finances. And on Monday, Denelle was standing⁹ in line outside a First Republic Bank branch in Los Angeles. She was there waiting to withdraw most of her money. And Denelle told us she plans to move it to a larger bank where she believes it will be safer.

DENELLE: So I think just moving forward, maybe we'll always be, like, a little bit more diversified¹⁰ and a little bit more cautious about, you know, being with a smaller bank.

GURA: Now, no small regional bank wants to hear that, Leila. So right now, they're working extremely hard to keep customers from going elsewhere. Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank were pretty unique. They had a large uninsured set of deposits, and they catered¹¹ to very specific segments of the population. And I should say, right now, there is no indication any small bank is in trouble. But a bank analyst¹² told me this is a show-me moment for banks. They're under pressure to show their investors¹³ and their customers that they're in good shape.

FADEL: So how do they do that? How are they making the case?

GURA: Bankers are taking a long, hard look at their balance sheets and how their money is invested. And some of them are trying to build up a buffer¹⁴ in case they were to face a bank run. First Republic, which is based in San Francisco, actually went to JPMorgan Chase, one of the big banks over the weekend, to line up financing just in case.

Nathan Stovall is the head of financial institutions research at S&P Global Market Intelligence. And Stovall told me he expects many banks will want to keep more cash on hand. They're going to be more conservative going forward.

NATHAN STOVALL: I think you're going to see banks be a lot more cautious when it comes to making new loans right now, because the easiest way to preserve the cash you have is to not lend it out.

GURA: Now, this week, we've seen the heads of regional banks trying to push back against negative sentiment. They're reaching out to their customers directly, according to Rebeca Romero Rainey, who's the CEO of the Independent Community Bankers of America. And Rainey says this is their message.

REBECA ROMERO RAINEY: Take a breath. Let's have a conversation. Let's focus on the facts.

GURA: And, Leila, banks have some additional protection here. The Federal Reserve, on Sunday, made emergency funding available to other lenders just in case they get into trouble. Good for them to have, but, obviously, a measure of last resort for banks because of the stigma¹⁵ that would likely come with tapping into that financing.

FADEL: So what could the long-term impact be on the banking landscape?

GURA: We could see more consolidation¹⁶ of small regional banks. According to Nathan Stovall, there are about 4,500 of them in this country. But the majority of small business loans in the U.S. come from community banks, and banking with them appeals to a lot of people and to businesses because they're smaller, they're nearby. You can develop close relationships with individual bankers. And that's what these banks are trying to remind customers of as they face new scrutiny¹⁷.

I'll say, lastly, there's likely to be more scrutiny of all banks. The former chair of the FDIC was on NPR yesterday, and Sheila Bair is calling for every bank to undergo stress tests - regular exams from regulators, Leila, to make sure that they'd be able to weather a crisis.

FADEL: NPR's David Gura. Thanks, David.

GURA: Leila, thanks.

1 transcript   

n.抄本，誊本，副本，肄业证书

参考例句：

• A transcript of the tapes was presented as evidence in court.一份录音带的文字本作为证据被呈交法庭。
• They wouldn't let me have a transcript of the interview.他们拒绝给我一份采访的文字整理稿。

2 collapse   

vi.累倒；昏倒；倒塌；塌陷

参考例句：

• The country's economy is on the verge of collapse.国家的经济已到了崩溃的边缘。
• The engineer made a complete diagnosis of the bridge's collapse.工程师对桥的倒塌做了一次彻底的调查分析。

3 silicon   

n.硅(旧名矽)

参考例句：

• This company pioneered the use of silicon chip.这家公司开创了使用硅片的方法。
• A chip is a piece of silicon about the size of a postage stamp.芯片就是一枚邮票大小的硅片。

4 banking   

n.银行业，银行学，金融业

参考例句：

• John is launching his son on a career in banking.约翰打算让儿子在银行界谋一个新职位。
• He possesses an extensive knowledge of banking.他具有广博的银行业务知识。

5 regained   

复得( regain的过去式和过去分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地

参考例句：

• The majority of the people in the world have regained their liberty. 世界上大多数人已重获自由。
• She hesitated briefly but quickly regained her poise. 她犹豫片刻，但很快恢复了镇静。

6 byline   

n.署名；v.署名

参考例句：

• His byline was absent as well.他的署名也不见了。
• We wish to thank the author of this article which carries no byline.我们要感谢这篇文章的那位没有署名的作者。

7 regaining   

复得( regain的现在分词 )； 赢回； 重回； 复至某地

参考例句：

• She was regaining consciousness now, but the fear was coming with her. 现在她正在恢发她的知觉，但是恐怖也就伴随着来了。
• She said briefly, regaining her will with a click. 她干脆地答道，又马上重新振作起精神来。

8 skeptical   

adj.怀疑的，多疑的

参考例句：

• Others here are more skeptical about the chances for justice being done.这里的其他人更为怀疑正义能否得到伸张。
• Her look was skeptical and resigned.她的表情是将信将疑而又无可奈何。

9 standing   

n.持续，地位；adj.永久的，不动的，直立的，不流动的

参考例句：

• After the earthquake only a few houses were left standing.地震过后只有几幢房屋还立着。
• They're standing out against any change in the law.他们坚决反对对法律做任何修改。

10 diversified   

adj.多样化的，多种经营的v.使多样化，多样化( diversify的过去式和过去分词 )；进入新的商业领域

参考例句：

• The college biology department has diversified by adding new courses in biotechnology. 该学院生物系通过增加生物技术方面的新课程而变得多样化。 来自《简明英汉词典》
• Take grain as the key link, develop a diversified economy and ensure an all-round development. 以粮为纲，多种经营，全面发展。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

11 catered   

提供饮食及服务( cater的过去式和过去分词 )； 满足需要，适合

参考例句：

• We catered for forty but only twenty came. 我们准备了40客饭菜，但只来了20个人。
• They catered for everyone regardless of social rank. 他们为所有人服务而不计较其社会地位。

12 analyst   

n.分析家，化验员；心理分析学家

参考例句：

• What can you contribute to the position of a market analyst?你有什么技能可有助于市场分析员的职务？
• The analyst is required to interpolate values between standards.分析人员需要在这些标准中插入一些值。

13 investors   

n.投资者，出资者( investor的名词复数 )

参考例句：

• a con man who bilked investors out of millions of dollars 诈取投资者几百万元的骗子
• a cash bonanza for investors 投资者的赚钱机会

14 buffer   

n.起缓冲作用的人(或物)，缓冲器；vt.缓冲

参考例句：

• A little money can be a useful buffer in time of need.在急需时，很少一点钱就能解燃眉之急。
• Romantic love will buffer you against life's hardships.浪漫的爱会减轻生活的艰辛。

15 stigma   

n.耻辱，污名；(花的)柱头

参考例句：

• Being an unmarried mother used to carry a social stigma.做未婚母亲在社会上曾是不光彩的事。
• The stigma of losing weighed heavily on the team.失败的耻辱让整个队伍压力沉重。

16 consolidation   

n.合并,巩固

参考例句：

• The denser population necessitates closer consolidation both for internal and external action. 住得日益稠密的居民，对内和对外都不得不更紧密地团结起来。 来自英汉非文学 - 家庭、私有制和国家的起源
• The state ensures the consolidation and growth of the state economy. 国家保障国营经济的巩固和发展。 来自汉英非文学 - 中国宪法

17 scrutiny   

n.详细检查，仔细观察

参考例句：

• His work looks all right,but it will not bear scrutiny.他的工作似乎很好，但是经不起仔细检查。
• Few wives in their forties can weather such a scrutiny.很少年过四十的妻子经得起这么仔细的观察。