Silicon Valley Bank assets seized as depositors pull cash

The Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation seized the bank’s assets in the middle of the business day (Jeff Chiu/AP)

The US rushed to seize the assets of Silicon Valley Bank on Friday after a run on the bank, the largest failure of a financial institution since Washington Mutual during the height of the financial crisis more than a decade ago.

Silicon Valley, the nation’s 16th largest, failed after depositors – mostly technology workers and venture capital-backed companies – began withdrawing their money as anxiety about the bank’s situation spread this week.