New York (CNN) Nervous bank customers rushed to the safety of big banks following two high-profile bank failures that shook faith in the system.
Bank of America (BAC), Wells Fargo (WFC) And Citigroup (VS) have all seen a significant increase in deposits since Silicon Valley Bank ran into trouble last week, people familiar with the matter told CNN.
Smaller banks and regional banks have suffered deposit outflows, although a senior Treasury official told CNN earlier this week that those customer outflows have eased.
The situation is fluid and it is not known exactly how much money has been invested in the big banks, although the sum is probably in the billions or tens of billions of dollars.
Last Thursday alone, clients ripped $42 billion from Silicon Valley Bank, draining the California lender of all its money. On Friday, regulators closed the bank, making it the second-largest bank failure in US history.
Over the past week, Citi has accelerated account openings in retail banking, small business lending and wealth management, a person familiar with the matter said.
Bank of America raised more than $15 billion in new deposits in just days, reports Bloomberg News.
Banks generally do not disclose details of short-term fluctuations in deposits, choosing to publish these figures on a quarterly basis.
Bank of America, Wells Fargo and Citi declined to comment.
Big banks are perceived as safer due to their larger balance sheets. Moreover, their role as systemically important institutions suggests that the government would come to their aid in times of trouble, as they did in 2008.
But the FDIC insures deposits up to $250,000 per bank per borrower, whether the accounts are at small, medium, or large banks.
Analysts say the FDIC’s decision to bail out uninsured depositors at Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank suggests regulators would be forced to do the same if another bank collapsed.