Overview

This book provides a first-hand account of the founding, ascent, and dissolution of Silicon Valley Bank (SVB), a tech community bank founded in 1982 with US$5 million that became the nation's 13th largest bank and tech industry's lender and bank. In this pathbreaking work, which challenges conventional understanding of risky tech lending by showing how an independent community bank became the go-to bank for the tech industry in the United States, Xuan-Thao Nguyen includes interviews with key players, ranging from the original founders and early employees to the current CEO of SVB. Chapters explore how the relationship between the venture capital (VC) industry and SVB transformed the way commercial banks comply with banking regulators while lending and nurturing young tech clients. The book demonstrates why the relationships between investors, start-ups, bankers, lenders, experts, lawyers, regulators, and community leaders are key ingredients for ongoing innovation in the tech industry. The book concludes with the sobering dissection of SVB's sudden death by $142 billion cuts inflicted by tech bros, social media, and the Federal Reserve Bank's successive interest rate hikes to squash the overheated economy.

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9781009416177

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Reviews

'Silicon Valley Bank is a fascinating cautionary tale of the perils of innovation in a stalwart industry steeped in tradition. Ms. Nguyen explores the intersection between finance and technology and takes a deep dive into the inherent gender bias and toxic environment that plagues Big Tech, and the willful ignorance of the investors who ignored the warning signs and continued to provide financial support. A compelling story about an unprecedented disruption, Silicon Valley Bank is an indispensable resource for anyone who seeks to understand the venture capital landscape in the world of technology.' Claudia Cantarella, Chief Legal Officer, Broadway Technology 'This book reads like a popular streaming docuseries. A bank built for the tech community by the tech community. From a university classroom idea to one of the top largest banks in 2022. Hubris had less to do with its downfall than the model that grew it into a financial juggernaut. A must-read!' Kiriakoula Hatzikiriakos, Manager - Senior Legal Counsel, Commercial/International sector of Legal Affairs, National Bank of Canada 'Professor Nguyen offers a comprehensive and insightful account of how an innovative and inclusive bank emerged, rose up, and suddenly collapsed, with critical lessons for the regulation and management of financial institutions in the digital age. She argues convincingly why the bank's concept and practice in start-up and tech firm lending is fundamentally sound and much needed for economic growth. The book offers valuable knowledge for the developing economies which are endeavoring to increase their SME access to finance by leveraging movable assets such as intellectual property, receivables, equipment, and company shares.' Jinchang Lai, Sherpa, Asia-Pacific Financial Forum (APFF) Financial Infrastructure Development Network (FIDN) 'In Silicon Valley Bank, Professor Nguyen takes us on an engaging and compelling journey of the life cycle of a bank that broke the mold - from the inception of an idea in a Stanford classroom through its ultimate collapse in 2023. It is a brilliant and insightful account of the people, the strategies, the risks, the successes, and the convergence of tech culture with banking culture. Powerful and timely!' Elizabeth A. Rowe, Henry L. and Grace Doherty Foundation Professor of Law, University of Virginia School of Law

Author Information

Xuan-Thao Nguyen is the Pendleton Miller Endowed Chair in Law at the University of Washington in Seattle. She has authored numerous books, treatises, and law review articles in the areas of intellectual property, finance, business, and taxation. She also serves as a senior consultant to the World Bank Group IFC.

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