Today we’re talking about the topic of the day, week, month, and maybe even year — banking.

Silicon Valley Bank’s tech startup-centric clientele and remarkably high amount of uninsured deposits made it different from a lot of other banks. But there’s a regulatory landscape in the background of SVB’s downfall story.

On the show today, Mehrsa Baradaran, a banking law professor at the University of California Irvine and author of the books “The Color of Money” and “How the Other Half Banks,” explains how regulatory changes made way back in the 80’s landed us where we are now, the psychological nature of bank runs, and what regulators can learn from this SVB-triggered banking episode.

In the News Fix, the case for incorporating more lentils and other climate-friendly foods into the American diet. Also, we’ll give an economics crash course on “Minsky moments.” And, why commercial real estate debt could become another problem for banks.

Later, one listener shares why they’re on TikTok, and another listener reminds us to remember the folks who are hit hardest by climate change. And, Kaye Wise Whitehead, president of the National Women’s Studies Association, explains why she was wrong about motherhood.

Here’s everything we talked about today:




“How Silicon Valley Bank & Signature Bank Lobbied to Weaken Regulations That Could Have Prevented Collapse” from Truthout







“Opinion | After Silicon Valley Bank collapse, scrap the deposit insurance limit” from The Washington Post







“Federal Reserve and Lawmakers Eye Bank Rules After Collapse” from The New York Times







“What Is a Minsky Moment? How Do World Debt Levels Look Now?” from Bloomberg







“Why Americans should eat more lentils” from The Washington Post







“Commercial Property Debt Creates More Bank Worries” from The Wall Street Journal





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