First Republic Bank Seized; Sold to JPMorgan

Federal regulators seized troubled First Republic Bank early Monday, making it the second-largest bank failure in U.S. history.

Following the seizure, all of First Republic’s deposits and most of its assets were sold to JPMorgan Chase.

San Francisco-based First Republic operates three branches in San Diego County.

Monday’s deal was made in a bid to end the turmoil that has raised questions about the health of the U.S. banking system. First Republic is the third midsize bank to fail in less than two months. The only larger bank failure in U.S. history was Washington Mutual, which collapsed at the height of the 2008 financial crisis and was also taken over by JPMorgan in a similar government-orchestrated deal.

“Our government invited us and others to step up, and we did,” said Jamie Dimon, chairman and CEO of JPMorgan Chase.

First Republic has struggled since the March collapses of Silicon Valley Bank, Signature Bank and La Jolla-based Silvergate Capital.