Silicon Valley Bank’s chief risk officer is out, months after taking the job

When Silicon Valley Bank’s collapse was first unfolding, a belated disclosure colored some of the chaos: The bank spent most of last year without a chief risk officer, and the one who left sold more than $4 million of stock in the bank before departing.

The new CRO, Kim Olson, who joined in January 2023, was only three months on the job before the bank was shut down by regulators. Now, sources tell TechCrunch that Olson and at least one other executive are leaving SVB, too. Sources said SVB’s chief audit executive is also leaving the business.

The departure comes just two weeks after a $72 billion chunk of SVB was bought by First Citizens Bank. The recent departures are on top of a string of executive exits, including former CEO Greg Becker and CFO Daniel Beck, who left when the bank was taken over by regulators.

SVB and Olson did not respond to TechCrunch’s request for further comment on Olson’s departure. Employees at the newly combined institution do not yet know who the new chief risk officer will be. A potential successor is First Citizens’ CRO Lorie Rupp, who has been in the role since 2017.

Talent moves are sure to continue as a natural part of SVB’s transition to new ownership. It’s been a little over a month since Silicon Valley Bank was shut down by regulators.

Today, HSBC USA announced that it hired 40 bankers from SVB to help build a new offering “dedicated to the innovation economy,” according to a statement sent to TechCrunch. The bank has poached veteran SVB talent, including chief business development officer Sunita Patel, head of Life Science and healthcare Katherine Andersen, head of tech and healthcare banking David Sabow and head of technology credit solutions Melissa Stepanis who will oversee technology.

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