The collapse of Silvergate Capital stock went gradually, then suddenly, delivering a sizable payday to bearish traders who had bet against the crypto-focused bank. These short sellers may also bear some responsibility for what happened.
Silvergate (ticker: SI), once an influential provider of financial services to the digital asset industry, announced on Wednesday the bank planned to voluntarily wind down operations and liquidate. The stock dropped 37% between Tuesday and Thursday, but that was only the latest leg downward for the shares, which had already tumbled 90% since early November, when the bankruptcy of crypto exchange FTX rocked the sector.