// STARTUP COMPARISON
Loot vs Silicon Valley Bank
Loot failed in 2019 due to Ran Out of Money. Silicon Valley Bank failed in 2023 due to Unit Economics. Different causes, different sectors, different eras — but the same simulation outcome.
| METRIC | 🔥 Loot | 🔥 Silicon Valley Bank |
|---|---|---|
| Sector | Fintech | Fintech |
| Country | UK | USA |
| Founded | 2014 | 1983 |
| Died | 2019 | 2023 |
| Raised | £7M | Public company (SIVB) |
| Peak | 150,000 accounts | $209B assets |
| Primary Cause | Ran Out of Money | Unit Economics |
// WHY EACH FAILED
🔥 Loot
Ran Out of Money
Loot targeted UK university students with a prepaid card and budgeting app. After raising £7M it struggled to achieve sustainable unit economics while competing against better-funded Monzo and Revolut. Unable to raise a Series A in 2019, Loot entered administration in February 2019 with 150,000 accounts.
// LESSON
A sub-segment (students) within a market already being disrupted by better-funded competitors requires closing the funding gap before the big players dominate distribution.
A sub-segment (students) within a market already being disrupted by better-funded competitors requires closing the funding gap before the big players dominate distribution.
🔥 Silicon Valley Bank
Unit Economics
Silicon Valley Bank collapsed in March 2023 after a bank run driven by duration mismatch. SVB had invested deposits in long-duration bonds during low-rate periods. When rates rose, those bonds lost value. SVB announced a $1.8B loss on bond sales and a capital raise — triggering a $42B bank run in 24 hours. The FDIC seized SVB on March 10, 2023 — the second-largest bank failure in US history.
// LESSON
Asset-liability duration matching is not optional for banks. Investing short-term deposits in long-term bonds is a structural bet against rising rates. SVB had $80B in long-duration bonds when the Fed began the fastest rate rise cycle in 40 years.
Asset-liability duration matching is not optional for banks. Investing short-term deposits in long-term bonds is a structural bet against rising rates. SVB had $80B in long-duration bonds when the Fed began the fastest rate rise cycle in 40 years.
// EXPLORE FURTHER