Tech companies and their bank of choice are in crisis: there have been widespread layoffs, and Silicon Valley Bank (SVB) recently collapsed. So what went wrong?
Following the financial crisis in 2008, there has been an overwhelming amount of money sloshing around the market. When this tide of money went out, it was clear to see who was swimming without bathers: that is, which companies were overvalued or overexposed to financial risk, and a bank that had a risky balance sheet. Proper regulation was already in place to prevent undercapitalisation, but in the future maybe we need to look more closely at the valuation of new tech companies and treat them as proper alternative asset classes (assets that are not stocks, bonds or cash).
But as much as being the problem, tech may well be the solution, too. As economic theory has taught us, technology can boost economic growth and financial returns and improve our living conditions. Therefore we keep turning our passionate, professional, hopeful attention to this sector.
