| Mediaverse News Summary
California Gov. Gavin Newsom failed to publicly disclose his SVB ties while lobbying for a bailout
Cheering Silicon Valley Bank Bailout, Gavin Newsom Doesn’t Mention He’s a Client
Credit Suisse Shares Tumble to New Record Low, Saudis Pull Funding, Trading Halts
House panel set to review Biden family’s suspicious bank reports
Did Newsom illegally lobby for his own personal bailout?
- California Gov. Gavin Newsom reportedly had substantial personal ties to Silicon Valley Bank.
- Reports link Newsom to the bank through personal accounts, three wineries, and his wife’s charity.
- California law bans officials from influencing decisions in which they have “a financial interest.”
California Gov. Gavin Newsom lobbied the White House and the Department of the Treasury about the pending bailout of Silicon Valley Bank, even as three of his private wineries had apparently been among the bank’s clients, according to a Tuesday report by Ken Klippenstein of the Intercept.
According to Klippenstein’s reporting, Newsom’s personal relationship with SVB went beyond the wineries. One anonymous former employee who handled Newsom’s finances told Klippenstein that Newsom “maintained personal accounts at SVB for years.”
It is unclear whether those personal accounts were still active at the time of the bank’s collapse last week. If they were, Newsom could have stood to benefit directly from the Biden administration’s rescue package, which will reimburse SVB account holders even if their balances surpass the $250,000 limit insured by Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation.
On Saturday, Newsom’s office issued a statement that Newsom had “been in touch with the highest levels of leadership at the White House and Treasury.” He said the goal was to “stabilize” “the entire innovation ecosystem that has served as a tent pole for our economy.”
The following day, Newsom praised the administration for acting “swiftly and decisively.” Again, there was no mention of his own ties to the bank. Instead, Newsom expressed gratitude on behalf of “small businesses that can now make payroll, workers who will get their paychecks,” and “non-profits that can keep their doors open tomorrow.”
Newsom’s wife, Jennifer Siebel Newsom, happens to be the co-founder of one of those non-profits, California Partners Project. SVB reportedly donated $100,000 to that charity. The former bank’s president is listed as one of the charity’s board members. The ties between SVB and California Partners Project were first reported by Open the Books, an Illinois non-profit that tracks government spending.
The son of an attorney for the Getty Oil dynasty, Newsom’s fundraising prowess and deep ties to California Democrats have put him in the first tier of the party’s future presidential contenders. But as Newsom’s national profile has grown, his privileged background has emerged as a potential Achilles’ heel with voters. During the pandemic, he was photographed dining maskless with a large group of lobbyists at the French Laundry, an exclusive Napa Valley restaurant where foodies pay upwards of $300 a plate. He apologized, and claimed that the seating was outdoors.
Newsom has not discussed his personal ties to SVB publicly. It is unclear whether he disclosed them to the White House or Treasury during his contacts with the administration over the weekend.
As an elected official, Newsom is prohibited by state law from influencing a governmental decision “in which the official knows or has reason to believe the official has a financial interest.”
More at:
CHEERING SILICON VALLEY BANK BAILOUT, GAVIN NEWSOM DOESN’T MENTION HE’S A CLIENT
At least three of the California governor’s wine companies are held by SVB, and a bank president sits on the board of his wife’s charity.
ON MONDAY, California Gov. Gavin Newsom praised the Biden administration’s decision to intervene on behalf of Silicon Valley Bank’s clients after the bank was taken over by the FDIC on Friday amid a bank run. The White House “acted swiftly and decisively to protect the American economy and strengthen public confidence in our banking system,” Newsom said in a statement. What Newsom didn’t mention is that it also protected his own companies if they held over $250,000 in deposits.
CADE, Odette, and PlumpJack, three wineries owned by Newsom, are listed as clients of SVB on the bank’s website. Newsom also maintained personal accounts at SVB for years, according to a longtime former employee of Newsom’s who handled his finances, and who requested anonymity to avoid professional reprisal.
“Governor Newsom’s business and financial holdings are held and managed by a blind trust, as they have been since he was first elected governor in 2018,” Nathan Click, a spokesperson for Newsom, told The Intercept in an email.
..
Newsom added on Monday that he had been in close contact with the administration about SVB. “Over the last 48 hours, I have been in touch with the highest levels of leadership at the White House and Treasury,” Newsom said of SVB’s collapse in a statement released on Saturday. Asked about the nature of the interactions, the governor’s deputy communications director Brandon Richards did not respond.
NEWSOM, A MULTIMILLIONAIRE who was a businessman before becoming a politician, has been dogged for years with ethics questions about his corporate holdings. When asked during his 2018 campaign for governor if he would sell his companies, Newsom reportedly replied, “These are my babies, my life, my family. I can’t do that. I can’t sell them.”
Instead, in December 2018, Newsom announced that he would establish the blind trust and give control of his trust to a family friend and attorney, Shyla Hendrickson. Under the arrangement, his sister, Hilary Newsom, retained her role as president of the governor’s PlumpJack Group, which includes hotels, wineries bars, restaurants, and liquor stores founded by Newsom.
More at:
Credit Suisse Shares Tumble to New Record Low, Saudis Pull Funding, Trading Halts
Credit Suisse shares tumbled by as much as 30% to a new record low on Wednesday after Saudis pulled funding.
Trading in the Swiss banking giant’s stock was halted several times on Wednesday.
Saudi National Bank, which holds 9.88% of Credit Suisse said it is unable to purchase anymore shares because of regulations.
“We cannot because we would go above 10%. It’s a regulatory issue,” Saudi National Bank Chairman Ammar Al Khudairy told Reuters.
Credit Suisse CEO Ulrich Koerner told Reuters the Swiss bank’s liquidity base is “very, very strong.”
CNBC reported:
Shares of Credit Suisse on Wednesday plunged to a fresh all-time low for the second consecutive day after a top investor in the embattled Swiss bank said it would not be able to provide any more cash due to regulatory restrictions.
Trading in the bank’s plummeting stock was halted several times throughout the morning as it fell below 2 Swiss francs ($2.17) for the first time.
Swiss-listed Credit Suisse shares traded 17% lower at around 3 p.m. London time (11 a.m. ET), paring some of its earlier losses after dropping more than 30% at one point.
The share price rout renewed a broader sell-off among European lenders, which were already facing significant market turmoil as a result of the Silicon Valley Bank fallout. Some of the biggest decliners included France’s Societe Generale, Spain’s Banco de Sabadell and Germany’s Commerzbank.
More at:
House panel set to review Biden family’s suspicious bank reports
WASHINGTON — The House Oversight Committee’s staff on Wednesday will finally examine suspicious activity reports sent by banks to the Treasury Department alerting of potential criminal activity involving President Biden’s family.
The committee’s long-awaited review is expected to accelerate Republican committee Chairman James Comer’s investigation of Joe Biden’s links to ventures in places such as China, Russia and Ukraine.
“Oversight Committee staff will begin reviewing suspicious activity reports in camera at the Treasury Department Wednesday afternoon,” a spokeswoman for the panel told The Post, using a Latin phrase referring to a private review.
The Treasury Department allegedly stonewalled Comer’s demands for access before relenting Monday and agreeing to allow the review.
CBS News reported last year that there are more than 150 suspicious activity reports involving first son Hunter Biden and first brother James Biden.
Banks are required to submit SARs to the Treasury Department’s Financial Crimes Enforcement Network within 30 days of identifying potentially criminal activity such as money laundering or tax evasion.
The committee’s review of the documents is likely to expose new details about the Biden family’s international business ventures, which remain cloaked in secrecy amid the White House’s refusal to answer even basic questions.
Hunter Biden and James Biden pursued consulting work and investments in a range of countries during the eight years while their powerful relative was vice president and afterward — and involved Joe Biden directly in many of those business relationships.
Republicans say the international business deals create conflicts of interest for the commander-in-chief and may even demonstrate corruption.
Comer (R-Ky.) has demanded records from a wide range of sources and on Monday night alleged that freshly retrieved bank documents reveal that a “new Biden family member that’s never before been included in any of these investigations” received part of a $3 million payment from a Chinese energy company in early 2017.
Comer said that revelation came from records he subpoenaed from Bank of America pertaining to three Biden family associates.
Hunter and James Biden received at least $4.8 billion from CEFC China Energy in 2017 and 2018, according to a Washington Post review of documents from Hunter Biden’s abandoned laptop.
Joe Biden allegedly met in May 2017 with Hunter Biden’s then-business partner Tony Bobulinski to discuss the CEFC deal, and another Hunter Biden associate, James Gilliar, the same month proposed that 10% of the business deal would be “held by H for the big guy.”
Both Bobulinski and Gilliar have identified Joe Biden as the “big guy,” and an October 2017 email identifies Joe Biden as a participant in a call about CEFC’s attempt to purchase US natural gas.
More at:
More Stories
Josh Hawley Grills Mayorkas Over Laken Riley’s Death In Fiery Exchange: ‘Damning Indictment Of Your Policies!’
Israel strikes back at Iran:
Mexican cartels are taking over Indian reservations in U.S. states