Many are struggling with high deposit rates and shaky commercial real estate portfolios. Some seek to bulk up as a solution.

Business owners have taken steps to protect their cash since three regional banks failed last year.

The agency wants the country’s largest banks to split the cost of refilling its coffers. But smaller banks aren’t sure they’re in the clear.

But it needs Congress’s blessing.

For one, help from the FDIC, which will absorb up to 80% of the losses coming from First Republic’s residential and commercial loans.

In the wake of the Silicon Valley Bank debacle, the 1984 failure of Continental Illinois remains relevant.

Besides testifying in hearings, regulators need to get a few messages across, including that the system worked, a PR executive says.

From creating joint accounts to patronizing multiple banks, there are ways to maximize FDIC coverage, says economics contributor Chris Farrell.

SVB has a “$15 billion hole,” says Semafor’s Liz Hoffman. Banks big enough to take on the challenge were initially not invited to bid.

The feds didn’t take possession of Silicon Valley Bank and Signature Bank. That was up to state regulators in California and New York.