President Joe Biden responded to the closure of First Republic Bank on Monday, saying regulators have taken actions to ensure that taxpayers are “not on the hook.”
“These actions are going to make sure that the banking system is safe and sound and that includes protecting small businesses across the country who need to make payroll for workers and their small businesses,” Biden said while speaking during an event for national small business week.
“Let me be very clear, while depositors are being protected, shareholders are losing their investments and critically tax payers are not the ones that are on the hook, as I said earlier,” he added.
Federal regulators seized First Republic Bank on Monday and sold it to JPMorgan Chase, marking the second-largest bank failure in U.S. history. Regulators took ownership of the bank after it reported losing over $100 billion in deposits. (RELATED: Federal Regulators Seize And Sell Major Bank To JPMorgan Chase)
The bank is the third major bank to fail in recent months, following the closure of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank.
Biden expressed concern that the country should not be “back in this position again.”
“Going forward, I’ve called on Congress to give regulators the tools to hold bank executives accountable, and I’ve called on regulators to strengthen regulations and supervision of large and regional banks. And folks, we have to make sure that we’re not back in this position again. And I think we’re well on our way to be able to make that assurance,” the president said.