Charles Schwab, who founded the investment brokerage that shares his name, has lost $2.9 billion since March 8 and the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank, according to Bloomberg.
Most of the 85-year-old’s wealth comes from a 6% stake in the brokerage that he founded in 1971, styled as a brokerage for people looking for discount prices. Schwab stepped down as CEO in 2008 but still serves as chairman of the board.
Related: Signature Bank Shuts Down After Billion-Dollar Bank Run
Silicon Valley Bank, (SVB) a California-based bank focused on startups, disclosed an enormous loss last week after a crypto-focused bank, Silvergate Capital, closed.
This set off a wave of panic in the banking industry, first with a severe drop in regional banks’ stock prices, and then a bank run at SVB, as founders rushed to recover deposits. Signature Bank also said it faced a run on its customer balances, leading the government to take over both and promise to guarantee customer deposits.
Still, the Dow shot up 400 points on Tuesday after the Consumer Price Index showed inflation cooled off in February. Regional bank stocks rallied as well.
Regardless, as Bloomberg noted, Charles Schwab’s stock dropped 32% since the end of the day Wednesday. The value of a publicly traded company is based on the price of its outstanding shares. As such, a dramatic stock rout can pull down the value of a company and the value of shares people like Schwab hold in it.
Thus, based on his stake in the company, the outlet calculated, Schwab has lost $2.9 billion since Wednesday last week. This is the largest drop he has faced since landing on the outlet’s Billionaire’s Index 10 years prior.
The brokerage was also a target, as Bloomberg noted because they have similar investment portfolios, however, the brokerage’s assets are insured, unlike SVB, the outlet added.