Billionaire Warren Buffett, one of the greatest investors of all time, reportedly spoke to President Joe Biden over the weekend, giving advice on the tumultuous situation the banking sector is currently navigating. According to the news outlet, calls between the legendary investor and Biden's team focused on Buffett potentially investing in the U.S. regional banking sector. The 92-year-old chair and CEO of Berkshire Hathaway also had advice on how to navigate the unfolding banking crisis.
In 2011, during the U.S. debt-ceiling crisis, Buffett gave a capital infusion of $5 billion to Bank of America Corp. The move shored up confidence in one of the biggest U.S. banks at a time of turmoil, while also turning out to be an extremely lucrative investment for Buffett.
News of Buffett's involvement in talks about the current banking sector crisis, started by the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, have been reported by several news media, which have written about heads of regional banks traveling to Omaha, Nebraska, over the weekend.
“A large number (>20) of Private Jets landed in Omaha yesterday afternoon. Jets flew from HQs of Regional Banks, Ski Resorts & DC. Did Buffett just fly all the regional bank CEOs into Omaha & offer a deal to SAVE the banks?” tweeted market researchers Fuzzy Panda.
Last weekend, the federal government tried to contain the damage of SVB's meltdown and contagion to the wider banking sector by assuring all SVB customers that their deposits will be fully paid out, whether they were insured or not. But this and other emergency measures, including the shutting down of New York-based Signature Bank, failed to appease investors, with shares in regional banks continuing to fall this week.
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