First Republic Bank execs reportedly sold $11.8 million of company stock this year shortly before the regional bank’s share price collapsed as panic mounted following the demise of three similar financial institutions.
Six First Republic insiders sold 90,682 shares between January 17 and March 6 at a share price between $123 and $145, reported Forbes, while citing regulatory filings disclosed by the company.
The beleaguered regional bank’s shares which have been in a freefall over the last couple of days, plunged another 22.7% to $26.54 on Friday on the New York Stock Exchange.
The US magazine noted that First Republic founder and executive chairman James Herbert II, CEO Michael Roffler, head of credit David Lichtman and banking chief Michael Selfridge were among the insiders who dumped $11.8 million in stock before its 70% collapse. Herbert, before stepping down last spring, was the biggest seller, offloading $4.5 million of his First Republic shares in separate January and February transactions.
A person close to Herbert told Forbes that the 78-year-old’s sales were part of “routine transactions intended to fund philanthropic efforts and estate planning,” pointing out that the shares disposed of by Herbert in 2023 amounted to 4% of his big stake in First Republic.
The Wall Street Journal first reported on the publicly disclosed sales early Thursday.
Meanwhile, the CEO of Silicon Valley Bank’s parent company sold $3.6 million worth of his company’s stock two weeks before the institution’s forced closure, a move that is under investigation by federal prosecutors.
Contact the author Uttara Choudhury at uttara@proactiveinvestors.com
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